Endless Time
by PyoKuuPyon
Summary: Maki, a princess who had nothing much to do had her life turn a 180 when Nico came into her life,little did they know that their meeting and friendship is the key in saving the whole world.(Might be OoC, contains AU and other stuff) Current Pairs: [NicoMaki][NozoEri][KotoUmi(will be budding soon)]
1. A visit of an energetic child

**A/N: Okay! I'm back! had a lil' fight with a friend here and there but don't worry! it was nothing friendship-threatening(i hope so ;w ;)**

**(kt . taborada): yissss i wanted to continue Lost Connection but i just don't know what to add, forgive me! (i'd probably add if IF my mind ****will miraculously ever think of something that can be added)**

**(Dash24zappshift): naw pls my story was laaaaaaame /shot and yes, i'll be making more! dem NicoMaki shippers unite!**

**Soooooo this time, i'll be making a multi-chaptered story about Nico and Maki(OBVIOUSLY KUU YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO SAY THAT *slaps*)**

**feel free to PM me on what i should be improving on and yes, this is kinda short for a first chapter but sorry! i can't think of anything else A**

**Disclaimer: I do not own L-*gets smacked* ove live!**

* * *

_Everytime I_ _see you , I_ _feel that i'm alive,_

_without regret or despair, i'd take what's worth the dive,_

_If you were to move elsewhere, i'd follow you everywhere,_

_for you are my love, for you are someone whom I hold dear._

the silent whispers of the nighttime winds blew inside the red haired princess' ears, which was ignored as she was thinking of something else, something which had captivated her whole being, someone who has her heart, someone, whom she loves.

it was around 10 at night when Maki, the strong and resilient princess fell deep in thought with her (soon to be) beloved man, er, _girl. T_hey have only met a few days ago but it was as if the wheel of fate was playing with their very lives.

"Why did you have to invade my daily life, why did you have to make everyday such a tiring day.."

"Why have I become a captive of your love?"

The princess sighed before heading to bed and closed her luscious, imperial purple shaded eyes...

_Will my smile smile also grant my greatest dream?_

_Hoppity hop hop! How small~_

_Try giving me a hug, hoppity hop!_

_Acting cold? Great! Cold girls are strong!_

"Ah...even here you're..." Maki thought as she was soothed by then, suddenly...

_*thud* *clack*_

Maki found herself in a daze as she found herself on the cold, sturdy ground.

"Maki! Maki! Play with me!" Kokoa said energetically as she tried to pull Maki up

"..." trying to suppress the pain she felt just now, she hurriedly stood up and followed Kokoa to their usual playroom.

* * *

Kokoa was really, and I meant _Really_ energetic, Maki had to struggle at least 5 hours of non-stop playtime with Kokoa just to get her to a dormant state.

"Maki! Maki! Carry me!" Kokoa shouted which was all heard by the people inside Nishikino Castle,

"Just don't shout _that _loud again, okay?" Maki replied as she carried Kokoa with ease,

"Yaaay! I'm flying!"

"This must be how it feels like to have a child..." Maki mused,

_A child...with Nico!? N-n-no way, not in a million years...well, maybe not million, WHAT AM I SAYING!? It's not like two girls can make one in the first place! B-besides! S-she might have someone else in mind..._

as Maki's in the verge of tears in her internal battle with herself, Kokoa wiped the tear that was forming on Maki's face and said,

"Don't be sad Maki! Everything in life is fun if you think it is!"

Kokoa's words landed on Maki's heart, which seemed to have eased her pain.

"Thanks Kokoa, I appreciate your kindness" Maki said as another tear formed on her eyes,

"I'm sure Nico-nee-sama will be happy if you smile more Maki!"

"W-w-w-what are you saying K-Kokoa!" with Maki getting all flustered, Kokoa caressed Maki's face with her small hands.

"See? Maki looks more beautiful when she smiles."

"Kokoa..."

* * *

"...Where is she?" Maki sighed as she was tendering a sleeping Kokoa on her lap

_*thud* *thud* *thud*_

"Sorry for being late!"

"Shh, you'll wake her up." Maki said silently in which Nico replied with a nod.

"Here." said as she offered a drink to the internally tensed Maki

"T-Thanks."

"..."

"..."

The Eerie silence was a sign that both had an internal fight within themselves, surprisingly, it was Nico who broke the silence.

"So... how was it?" she asked,

"How was what?" Maki asked.

"playing with Kokoa, was it fun?"

"Ah, yes, playing with Kokoa was indeed fun.." Maki said as she gazed into Nico's ruby shaded eyes.

"But..."

"But?" Nico asked showing a clueless face as to why Maki's been staring at her

"...it's much more fun playing with Nico..."

_w-what did i just..!_

the two soon realized that their faces were fully covered with Rosewood colored blushes.

"S-So...d-do you want to play with me then?" Nico asked the still blushing princess,

"Y-Yeah..." Maki said with a huge grin in her mind.

**Outside Nishikino Castle**

Within the terrains of Nishikino property lies a small cottage, unseen by the public due to it's mysterious force holds two seemingly unfamiliar figures,

"Hmm? It seems we have a visitor, should we go and give them a welcoming gift?"

"Not now, we must wait for the right moment, until then, we must hold our ground."

"Aww~ you're such a kill joy~"

"...Shut up."

* * *

**Hooray! with that set, will Nico and Maki be having fluffy fluffy time in the next chapter? or~ will a ****_strange_**** force come between these**

**two lovely couples(mehehe~ dontkillmepls) **

**feel free to give some feedback (a slap will also do, not that i want it or anything.)**

**YES! i'll be using some of the extras too!**

**awesomepeoplereadingthiscrappystory: what about the other Love Live Characters Kuu?**

**Kuu: yes yes, we'll get to that later, in fact~ just kidding**

**awesomepeoplereadingthiscrappystory: *raises pitchforks***

**Kuu: eeep, yes yes i'll be adding them, but that'll be in the later parts of the story! -runs away-**

**I'll be updating this fanfic every 1-2 days~ if i'm not that busy that is(just kiddin, i have lots of time in this weeks fiesta, so stay tuned!)**


	2. Azure Coated Days

**A/N: Oooookay, i was supposed to post this yesterday but muh proofreader bailed on me ; w;(4 more proofreaders available though nyehehe~ he's currently busy with some papers to accompany him :3)**

** (kt . taborada): psh please, my writing skills are so deficient, even my dog can write better than me(life is unfair ; w;)**

**(tjcooper66): yea that Kokoa babysitting part was somewhat random even for me ; w;**

**(Dash24zappshift): thanks~ and i'll try my best to update with the best of my abilities! -lazes around-**

**(KidoTsubomi22): thanks~ will be doing more~(d-do!? do what!?)**

**(kiruchi): hmm~ i _was_ planning on those two being someone who'll be saving Nico and Maki fro- okay i shouldn't spoil it ; w; (sorry)**

**(darkglitch): if you can't wait, make a time machine~ -dontkillmepls-**

**Thanks for your support you...you..*sniffs* awesome readers! -brbjumpingoffacliff-**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live! (maybe...just kiddin')**

* * *

_The awkward silence has come again._

_I need to think of something, quick! This silence is killing me._ Nico thought.

Nico took a deep breath and put on a serious face at Maki who's still in a post-shock state with emotions flying here and there in her head.

Leaving that thought away, Nico said, "So, Maki-chan...have you ever wanted to see the outside world?"

"Eh?" Maki replied dumbfoundedly.

"W-well, I've never been outside this Castle which had provided me the necessities in life ever since. The maids **had** always told me that the outside world is scary and is filled with bad guys...so, I'm not really sure..."

"Come on Maki-chan! It'll be fun! Think about it, you get to meet new people, new places that you'll surely like! and most especially, you get to be with Nico!" Nico exclaimed.

"W-What made you think that I love being with you!" Maki replied in a flustered manner,

flipping Nicos' tease switch to on.

"Ohhh~? Did I say "**love**"? I didn't recall saying that word~"

With Maki almost bursting out with tears, all she ever did was say "M-Mou!"

Maki and Nico's mid morning talk continued with Maki's face covered with pink shades almost every time she was teased by Nico.

After a few hours of Maki teasing time, Maki carried Kokoa to bed, but as soon as she did, Kokoa suddenly plunged out of bed instinctively. The force of Kokoa's deadly tackle was enough to push Maki towards Nico, causing both of them to fall down. (thanks gravity)

"Augh..." Maki groaned,

"Ugh..." said the other.

As soon as they opened their eyes, it felt as if time stopped, for all they saw was the magnificent beauty of each others eyes, with each passing minute, the shades of pink below their eyelashes just keeps on getting darker and darker.

_Ah...So beautiful..those Dark ruby eyes, it feels as if it's calling me, those luscious lips, I wonder how it would taste like, and those cute dimples, oh how it fits Nico's adorable face so much...I wouldn't mind being on this state forever..._

Some time has passed, with a tint of pink shades covered parts of Nico's face, unable to stand due to Maki being on top of her and for some unknown fact, staring at her as if she was being inspected, what Nico could only mutter was,

"H-how long do you have to stare at the one and only Nico!?"

"A-ah..." Maki realized as she was too mesmerized at Nico's eyes.

The two fixed themselves properly, still with their rosewood shaded blushes, left the (surprisingly) still sleeping Kokoa and headed toward the nearest town.

"W-where are we going?" Maki asked as she was pulled by Nico towards the unknown.

"We're going to the town silly~ it's a starting point for every adventurer!" Nico joyfully yelled,

"A-adventurer!?" Maki replied with a shocked expression.

As they were walking, Maki had just felt a sensation that she had never thought that she would ever feel in a thousand years.

_S-She's holding my hand...it's so embarrassing yet she's just moving forward with a smile on her face!(Although it is cute when she smiles) What should I do!? It feels weird but at the same time, I want it to last forever...aaahhh! Keep calm Maki! You just need to endure it! Endure it!_

As Nico looked back to see an extremely blushed Maki.

"Hmm? Does Maki-chan have a fever?"

Nico went closer and pressed both of their foreheads together, causing Maki to turn red even more.

_Too close too close too close too close!_

"hmm, doesn't seem to be a fever... Oh well, forward we go!" Nico said before pulling back her head away from Maki's.

"Oh god...I thought I was gonna die there..." Maki thought as the blood continued to rise inside her head.

After a few more minutes of traveling, they began to see houses, one by one, each having its own various sizes.

"Wow..." was all that Maki could say,

"You haven't seen anything yet! Let's go inside."

The town was named Umi town, not because it was close to the Sea or anything, but it was named after the great prince, Sonoda Umi. The people inside the town usually give the coldest and sometimes harshest advices, but surely,they do it with a pure, helpful and innocent mindset.

"Wahh...it's so beautiful..." Maki mused as she continued to follow Nico.

"Umi town's really popular with its refined taste in sports, such as Archery! I wonder if I'm good enough to hit the bullseye, want to give it a try Maki-chan?"

_Nico-chan's so cute when she's this excited...wait what am I saying! Stupid Maki!_

"A-Ah...sure, why not."

_Shwook_

"Aw~ Lil' Maki-chan missed~ don't worry, I'm here to cheer for you! Ey ey hooray!"

"S-Shut up! I'm trying to concentrate..."

_She's looking at me,I have to look cool...okay Maki, take a deep breath and aim carefully._

_Thug_

"Yay! Maki-chan did it!"

Nico gave Maki a big hug for her achievement,

_Aaaah! She's hugging me! I don't think I can last much longer!_

"Ah, let's go and check the beach Maki-chan!" Nico said as she released her hug

"Uh, sure." Maki replied

_That was a close call, although I did want more of her hugs..._

After taking a few strolls around town, they took a path that leads them to the nice, relaxing beach, nobody except Nico and Maki were there since it was almost nighttime.

"it seems that we have all of the beach for ourselves! Right Maki?"

"Yeah, seems so."

Nico began to remove her clothes in front of Maki, which caused a certain princess to flinch from this action.

"Hmm? What's wrong, Maki?"

"W-w-why are you removing your clothes out in the open!?"

"Well, we're the only ones here,it's not like you're interested in my body anyway."

With those words said, it made Maki realize how much of an airhead when it comes to love.

_Of course I am, idiot! Can't you see how flustered I am!_

The two of them played together, surrounded by water, their limited movements frequently made them fall together. It was somewhat rough play, but they both had fun.

"Okay Maki, let's see who can hold their breath the longest underwater."

"I'm not losing against you."

As they were about to begin, they notice that someone else had entered the waters.

With Nico getting all curious, she asked, "Ah, someone else went in, wanna check it was?"

"Hmm, sure." Maki replied as she was twirling her wet red velvet hair,

The dark silhouette soon dissipated and showed a figure of a woman with azure hair, her proportions were quite good enough to make Nico jealous.

"Grr, if only my body was at least that mature, I'd be a knockoff for sure!" Nico said in envy, which caused Maki to reply with a poker face expression.

"Who's there!?" shouted the azure haired woman

_*gulp*_

"I think we're in trouble Maki."

Maki could only nodded in response.

* * *

**A/N: Guess our lovely couples are in a tight(and wet) situation~ **

**Most of you already know who this Azure haired woman so i'll be here lazing(lalala)**

**Maki - A Princess who has never seen the outside world(well, she's been outside but not outside the Nishikino's property) due to her parents protective attitude(well pretty much only the father, mommies hafta obey, not really)**

**Nico - A Traveler who somehow got into the castle as she was searching for a precious thing (will be making another chapter about their first encounter)**

**my friend told me to change Umi Town to Sonoda Town(since Umi Beach(Umi in the beach A u A) sounds weird but Sonoda Beach sounds weirder since it sounds like...you get what i'm sayin'.) **

**since my one-shot, Lost Connection wasn't really that clear to most readers, i'll be writing another chapter for it for you guys to get a clearer understanding on for it.(feel free to slap me for that ; w;)**

**with the upcoming Fiesta... *cracks knuckles* (ouch) you'll be seeing another update soon!**

**Ciao!**


	3. Scarlet Covered Sight

**A/N: Hey Guys! It's me again! *gets hit by a squirrel* I was supposed to upload this last night but I was tooooo tired(was writing from 6pm to 3am non-stop, who wouldn't be tired?)**

**(Dash24zappshift): UMI DAHHHHH! yes probably and I do~ deserve a slap, come on. hit me, I know you want to. *offers cheek***  
**(kt . taborada): Not really, I'm just here slacking off and yes o uo festivals means more updates! and more slacking woo! *gets smacked***  
**(kuro): Lo siento, no hablo español ; w;**  
**(Guest): no problem-o! I was just as confused as you are ~ w ~**  
**(tjcooper666): I don't know what's gonna happen really, except for Nico and Maki having their innocent cutie time = u=**  
**(KidoTsubomi22): Gravity Judges us all! It is the master of everythin, bow to gravity !**

**Disclaimer : I don't own Love Live! ラブライブ or whatever you guys put in this Disclaimer thing, I don't really get it.**

* * *

"So...are you gonna speak or what?" the Azure haired woman asked while giving off a killer aura.

"W-wait...uh..." Nico waved her hands back and forth, thinking of something to say.

"Uhm..."

A few seconds later, the nighttime wind breezes on the girls bodies.

"Kyaa! Cold!" Maki screamed.

**Nico POV**

_That scream was so cute._

With the encounter of this... this... _Sexy _beast... I can't help but get jealous of her body!

Those curves are meant to die for, come on! I sometimes curse the heavens for giving me such a childish body, it's just not meant for tempt- I mean traveling compared to that girl's body.

"So... Hey there..." I muttered, getting a cold shoulder in return.

This azure haired girl didn't reply, why don't she reply! I was trying to be nice! As I gave her a pout, she started smiling for no reason, what's with her anyways, first she thought hostile of me and Maki, ignores me, then she gives us a smile? That doesn't seem to be like a logical action.

"...It seems that you are of no threat."

She finally talked back! Geez, that tension was getting on my head.

"I am Prince Sonoda Umi, the guardian of this Town, is there a reason for you two adventurers to be wandering in such a sacred area?"

"W-What, this is a sacred area?"

A few seconds later, I heard the sound of Maki's hand hit her head from the back.

_Wait...prince?_

"So..if you're a prince, why do you have such an exquisite body and...those...bo-" as I was about to finish, she interrupted.

"A-a-a-ahh! I've been seen!"

**Maki POV **

_This idiot... How did I even fall in love with her? W-wait, love...? I'm not in love! I can't! Not yet! W-wait, not yet? Stupid Maki! It's not like I'll fall in love with her soon! Keep it together!_

"obviously, Umi's a she, Nico-chan." I sighed.

"O-oh... Wouldn't that make you a princess, Umi?"

After coughing to clear her throat, Umi said, "Well, I was the only child who was successfully born in the Sonoda family, due to some interference, my other siblings, well... Didn't manage to survive, so with that, I became a prince since there's absolutely _no _way can a princess manage a town, or even the world."

_Seriously? Princesses aren't that weak you know, I'm pretty sure I can handle a town this size thank you, and you're a girl! Stop taking the title of a prince if you're a girl darn it! Although prince's tend to act cool, I wonder how would Nico act as a prince... Wait, what am I thinking! _

I gave a sigh of relief that this woman who calls herself _Prince _Sonoda Umi, was definitely someone who doesn't want to hurt us... Better yet, she might be even able to help us.

"Say, Umi-san, do you...uh..." I held the thought back and looked at Nico.

"Nico-chan, just _why _did you bring me out of castle again?"

**Umi POV**

I'm not really sure if you can call both of them friends or couples. They look like friends, but when they set their gazes towards each other... It looks so intense...

_So embarrassing! What was I thinking! A prince should not think of such thoughts! Even so, I really get the feeling that they're both more than friends which is so embarrassing!_

Scratching that thought off of my mind, I waited for the little one to talk, as she scratched her chin, she acted like she finally remembered.

"...Ah! I wanted to show something that Maki would like! It was a huge orb, yes yes, It was so shiny, I'm pretty sure only one exists in the whole world!"

_A stone...? Don't tell me she's talking about __**that**__. Well, if it were to be just a glance it'll be fine, but I'm pretty sure nobody would love to see __**that **__for a long duration, even with it's insane beauty. _

"Wait a minute, why do you want to show her _that,_ Nico?"

Surprisingly, I got the most amusing reaction I've ever seen in my whole life.

"Eep! How did you know that my name is Nico!?"

She seemed surprised, even thought her gir- I mean friend there used her name a while ago.

With the thought of the ball coming into my mind, I guess helping them would not be so bad since I am quite glad that there still are adventurers such as them who seek _actual _adventure.

Ever since the Lightning War, adventurers are hard to come by due to having most of the roads destroyed. Leaving them with little to no paths to take, It's been said that It would take at least 60 years of repairing before having 80% of the roads repaired.

"Well, I'm pretty sure what you're talking about is the white stone, Ultrice Sphere, it's been said to have been kept by an alchemist named Koizumi Hanayo. It's been said that whoever stares into it for a whole minute will be cursed of not being able to eating rice _ever _again. Last reports says that she stays in the deeper valleys of Zumi Zumi Islands."

This gave the three a shiver down their spine, and their tummies.

"Uwah, that sounds scary..." Nico replied somewhat sarcastically as an attempt to lighten up the atmosphere back to it's normal state.

"...I don't think I would want to be seeing that stone, Nico-chan." Maki muttered while shivering...not because of the sphere, but because of the cold.

"Wait..." Nico gave me a seemingly confused stare, I wonder what went wrong?

**Narrator POV**

With Nico staring at Umi at the eyes as if she was held captive with those amber eyes, you can hear the sounds of Maki's wails in the background. With each passing second, Umi has yet to know what's coming to her. After a few more seconds later, Nico was finally able to grasp her thought

"Last time I remembered, It was a colored red one..."

"W-What? I never recalled of a red sphere before..."

"Oh... Weird, but It was really red! Like Maki's hair red! Although lighter than the color of her face when she blushes!" she said excitedly while pouncing Maki playfully.

"W-w-what are you saying!? I don't blush!" Maki pouted, transferring the blush to Nico.

"P-please don't flirt in front of me... It's embarassing!" Umi said as she hides underwater.

"W-we're not flirting!" they said in unison.

As night closes in, the three decided to part ways since Nico almost forgot that Kokoa was left inside the castle although she had probably led herself back home already.

"It's nice knowing you, Umi-san." Maki gave Umi a smile, receiving a smile back.

"Next time, tell me how you got your body to grow like that, Umi-san!"

"W-what about my body!?" Umi shouted as she tries to hide her figure into the sea.

As they were walking back towards Nishikino Castle, Nico looked above and saw the twinkling of stars.

"Uwah..so beautiful! Look Maki-chan! It's so beautiful!" Nico jumped like a little kid as she pointed the obvious thing out from above.

"It's beautiful..."

"...But not as beautiful as you...Maki-chan..."

The red haired girl collapsed as soon as her mind registered what Nico had just said.

**Nico POV**

_Wow, did my teasing really did that much effect?_

I sighed.

I carried Maki-chan since we're obviously not gonna stay here until morning. Even though with Maki-chan's size, she seems to be pretty light... I wonder how it feels like to be carried?

After half an hour of walking with Maki on my hands, I rewarded myself with a short break. I mean, everyone needs a break or two in traveling! Can't survive without them.

I took out the water jug out of my bag and took a sip from it. As soon as I finished drinking, I fell into the sight of a sleeping Maki.

_So beautiful... Those perfect eyelashes, those slender curves... Those delicious looking lips... I wonder..._

As if a switch had been flipped, without a second thought, I sat on top of Maki-chan, closed my eyes and bended towards her.

_Closer..._

With such a cute attitude and perfect body, who wouldn't fall for her...

_Closer..._

I want to be with this girl forever...this Maki-chan...

_Closer..._

I want her to be mine...

At the last second, my consciousness came back to me.

"I can't do it..."

I don't want to taint her purity for now, not now. I want to keep her pure. If she were to fall in love with me, I'd gladly accept that love, but right now, it's too early.

Feeling pretty much replenished, I picked Maki-chan up, and continued to walk back to Nishikino Castle.

**Narrator POV**

As morning passed by, Maki, who was surprised to see herself in bed wiped her eyes and saw a sleeping Nico-chan beside her.

_N-Nico-chan!?_

_W-w-why's she beside me...more importantly, on bed!?_

As she panicked, Nico woke up and gave Maki a big hug, "Good morning sweetheart~"

_S-Sweetheart!?_

Next thing Maki saw was that Nico found her way on top of her.

"Time for your morning kiss~" Nico puckered her lips and dived towards Maki,

_AHHHH!_

Maki found herself waking up from her dream, with sweat on her face, she wipes it away and checked to see if Nico was there, and surprisingly, Nico was sitting on a chair, staring at a newly awaken Maki.

"Had a bad dream, sleepyhead?" She asked with a grin on her face,

"N-no... Not at all." Maki replied as she recalled her dream.

The red head rushed to the bathroom, cleansing every nook and cranny of her body.

"Are you okay in there, Maki-chan?"

Nico, who was waiting for Maki's reply, looked at the morning sky, feeling it's breeze as it hits her face.

_So refreshing. _Times like these reminds you of the good old days back when nature's your best comfort buddy.

As Maki exited the bathroom, Nico offered her a bath towel.

_Ah, I think I used that towel a while ago... Oh well. _Nico then prepared Maki's clothing, a frilly pink dress that comes with a ribbon, even a simple dress like this will expand Maki's cuteness by tenfold.

"We shouldn't rush ourselves Maki-chan."

"Hmm? Well, I'll follow you wherever you go, Nico-chan."

"Even my heart?"

"S-Shut up! Wa-ah!"

Maki slipped inside the bathroom due to her soap going haywire(really?), without a second thought, Nico rushed inside the bathroom.

"Are you okay Ma-"

Nico, who's face has been covered with multiple layers of red was unable to move back temporarily as she saw Maki's body, completely bare.

"So...uh...are you okay?"

"...G-g-g-get out!" Maki threw soap towards Nico's face, unable to avoid it. Nico took the soap at full force, causing her to fall unconscious.

_What have I done What have I done What have I done!_

Checking if Nico was okay, Maki carried Nico to her bed and check her pulse.

"...she's still alive." Maki sighed in relief.

_I'm really sorry Nico-chan..._

She kissed Nico's forehead thinking that it will relieve the pain she had dealt to the

Little girl.

Nico woke up a few hours later, still feeling the pain at her forehead, she decided to take a walk outside seeing that Maki was not inside the castle.

_Ahh..mother nature, can you teach me your ways on relaxing? _

She headed towards the big tree a few yards away from the castle, it was said to be a magical tree that relieves stress to whoever touches it, due to this rumors, you see people coming near the tree from time to time, but ever since the Lightning War, it's powers had lessen and so has its visitors.

Nico took a seat on one of its overgrown roots and relaxed.

_If only Maki was here, It would be perfect._

Nico once again entered into a deep slumber.

A few minutes later, Maki arrived to see a sleeping Nico.

_So this is where she was headed to... _She thought.

_Idiot... Stop making such an adorable face..._

"...Ma...ki..." Nico muttered in her slumber.

_W-Wha? Am I in her dream...?_

"... Cute..."

_C-cute!? D-did she just call me cute!? What if she's interested on me... W-what if she and I will...Kyaaa! Stop imagining such dirty thoughts Maki!_

"...cuddle me more..."

_W-What am I doing to her in her dream!?_

Before anymore of Nico's dream comes out , Maki passed out.

* * *

**A/N: aaaaand Maki passed out(darn it Tri, you beat me to it.) the end, just kidding.**  
**I'm still new to this fanfic thing so you'll probably see me playing around with different styles of writing, although I do tend to switch styles alot, and I mean alot.****It can sometimes... get too random too, although I always do my best to prevent that from happening.**

**GuyInTheAudience: everything you write is random, Kuu.**

**Kuu: I know ; w;**


	4. Dark Night Sky

**_A/N: Haroro everybody~ Disa meh Kuu at your service o uo and here's something...new. everyone knows that they can't get enough of yuri so time to reveal the other characters in this chapter~ (well, not everyone) o n o_**

**_(Dash24zappshift): mai random writing is for killing, killliiiing~ _**

**_(KidoTsubomi22): psh, it's just me being random. Everybody likes seeing Maki pass out, right everyone?_**

**_Everyone: no._**

**_Kuu: boo = 3=_**

**_(kt . taborada): yessu Hanayo's rice is a ricessity in her life.(don't kill me)_**

**_(kuro): *ties hair to a ponyhair style* harasho! Umi naisu body~_**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live, but I do own that panda on Nico's head! (I wish!)**

* * *

_Nnmm..where am I?_

As Maki's consciousness slowly returned, she noticed that her surroundings were somewhat...different. Violet shaded clouds reigning the skies, tree's showing no signs of life, it made Maki feel uneasy.

She stood up and surveyed the area. The more she tried, the weirder it got. Her castle was not there, instead it was replaced with a big mansion, two stories big. It took her some time to notice that her pink dress was replaced with a dark, eerie purple blouse. What scared her was not the new surroundings or the change of her clothes, but the lack of the presence of Nico.

_Nico... Where did you go? _She thought as she stood beside the entrance of the mansion. It gave an uneasy aura, something that Maki didn't like but due to her curiosity and instincts telling her that she needed to see Nico as soon as possible, she took a huge gulp from her throat, and opened the door slowly, it emitted a creaky sound.

She took baby steps in entering the mansion. It was dim but visible enough to see the three paths. on the left corner were stairs which brings you to the second floor. She sees a torch at the side but when she tried to go up to reach for it, her body was repelled halfway by the staircase.

_What the..._ She attempted to go up again but was yet again repelled by an invisible wall. Some sort of magic seemed to have blocked this path for uninvited visitors. Maki takes a look at the second path, it showed an almost unending hallway with multiple doors in each corner, giving her a headache as a result. She decided to take the third path. Upon entering, she sees two doors, one was coated with purple paint and the other was coated with yellow.

A small campfire was set below the chimney on the left side of the room, it seemed that someone was here recently. She surveyed the yellow door first. It was a normal looking room with stuff toys on top of the bed, it's light was left on for some unknown reason. She closed the door and checked the other one. It was yet another normal looking room, with tarot cards on top of a table, although several books were scattered down the floor.

Maki picked up a book titled, _Alternate realms, alternate lives_. She quickly scanned the book, due to her high intelligence and fast reading skills she was able to comprehend pretty much everything that was inside the book, it showed the way of bringing someone from an alternate realm to this realm. The person who's responsible for this is probably the one who's living in this room, was what she thought in mind.

She returned the book from where it used to be and left the room. As she closed the door, she heard a new voice, it was somewhat soothing but for her, it something that would soon haunt her dreams.

"My my, whoever told you that you can enter my room without permission?"

As Maki turned around, she saw _her_. A woman who's wearing a zephyr robe, her womanly figure was very visible. Her Mauve shaded hair was letdown, giving off a flowery fragrance on the air. You could easily see her as a beautiful, no... benevolent woman, but her motives and personality were unknown as she emitted a neutral aura.

With her fingertip touching her shining magenta lips, before Maki was about to retort to the woman's question, she softly grazes her fingers on Maki's beautiful Imperial Red hair.

"Such beautiful hair... No wonder she took an interest on you." she said with a visible smirk on her face.

_Her? And just who does she think she is for touching my royal hair!? _Maki thought as she opened her mouth to speak, but was stopped by the finger of the woman.

"You don't need to speak, I know what you were thinking. You're finding for a little raven haired girl and wanted to ask me if I saw her since I am the one who brought both of you to this realm, yes?"

_What the... How'd she... _Without giving a second to think, she was immediately given a reply.

she groaned then said,"I'm not sure really, I was testing that magic since _she _wanted to meet both of you, especially the little one... But due to my inexperience in that field, I was not able to transport both of you in the same exact location in which you landed."

Maki, who's in the state of confusion from taking all of these information finally recovered and quickly asked, "Even if we didn't land on the same place, she's still somewhere in this realm, right?"

"Yes, she's probably not too far away from place since I did set a limitation beforehand. Ah, I almost forgot. Let me introduce myself, I am Tojo Nozomi, don't worry about introducing yourself to me, Nishikino Maki, I've done my research about you and Yazawa Nico. This is the Maléfices realm but worry not, we mean no harm. In fact, we brought you here to send you a warning."

The atmosphere's tension went from dark to darker. Maki, who's fixated on finding Nico was suddenly pulled by Nozomi's word. _A warning? _She thought, with the endless possibilities of what the Enigmatic woman's words actually meant, she took a first and second gulp and paid close attention to what Nozomi would be saying next.

"The world is ending." She said in despair.

_What...? _Dumbstruck with the least expected phenomena she could have ever imagined, she imagined the scenery of losing her family, her friends and Nico. Feeling sick from what she had just thought. Almost immediately, Maki held back her tears, remembering that Nico doesn't like seeing her cry.

"That's the reason why called both of you here." Nozomi gave Maki hug for comfort.

"Huh? " with that said, a glint of hope began to show in Maki's eyes.

"You and Nico have an unbreakable bond, something that is out of this world. Your relationship is just more than friends, it is something special that brings the balance of both of our worlds but as time passes, certain forces grow stronger that leads to the corruption and destruction of both worlds."

_Nico and I... Are just more than friends...? No no no, I can't believe it. Is Nico... In lo- STOP Maki! Don't think of that, my Innocent Nico is dense. Wait, did I just say __**my**_ _Nico!? Aaaahh! Stupid Maki! Be quiet! _The conflict between the forces inside Maki's mind continues, leaving Nozomi giggling.

"W-what are you laughing at?" Maki murmured.

"See, you really do love her. Ever since I said that you and Nico are just more than friends, your face has been glowing red." Nozomi said in a playful tone.

"N-No I'm not!" Maki replied while hiding her face from embarrassment.

"Uhm, as I was saying." Nozomi cleared her throat and continued, "Due to this predicament, we need as much help as possible, It took some time for us to pinpoint people with great potential in saving both worlds from destruction. Unfortunately, we found it difficult to trace the others except for you and Nico. So we ask for your help, Maki, for you are one of those with great potential."

Still confused by what Nozomi's talking about, Maki further questioned her.

"Do you even have proof that _I_ am one of those people with _great potential_? If so, please show it to me."

Giggling, Nozomi replied. "All right, let's go then."

Nozomi entered her room, bringing Maki along. She pushed the bookshelf revealing a secret passage, surprising Maki in the process. As they entered the secret room, it showed scriptures that Maki, someone who's been reading books in her whole life has never seen before. It showed the predictions of the calamities the world may befall.

_What the...what's this, Incurable Virus that leads humans to the brink of extinction in 2 years time... Humans consumed by darkness and despair, leading to a catastrophic breakout... World turns into a huge tangerine, delivering wrath upon those who lives on it..._

As Maki read the third prediction, it delivered a shiver down her spine.

"Are you okay, Maki?" Nozomi asked worriedly.

"...Yeah... I'm fine." Maki replied as she remembered the events to what led her to dislike, or worse, be traumatized by tangerines.

While Maki gives her time to calm herself, Nozomi recalled where she finally placed the book she has been searching for the past 20 minutes.

"Ah, there it is." she pulled a strange looking book, covered with dust. She blows the dust away instinctively, which forced both of them to go out.

Nozomi opens the book and flipped it to a certain page which shows an image of 9 different people. A princess, a knight, a sorceress, a warlock, a druid, a bard, a bard, a gunslinger, an alchemist and a fool.

_In last moments of the world before it's destruction, the 9 heroes, each having little similarities with each other, have gathered from different realms with one goal, to save the world from it's destruction, nobody knows who they are, but when the time is right, they will show up..._

"So... I'm the princess?" Maki asked as she pointed the image of a princess, sitting on a giant throne.

"Mhm, that's right." Nozomi answered with a nod.

"Now that has been cleared up, do you believe me now?" Nozomi said with a calm smile,

"Yeah... I believe you." Maki replied, returning a smile to Nozomi.

"Now, shall we go and find about Nico's whereabouts?"

"Yes, lets."

Together, they exited the mansion. Leaving with a smile on Maki's face, due to Nozomi's nature of teasing, she proceeded to guess what Maki's thinking about.

"Hmm~ thinking about Nico now, are we?" she asked with a grin.

"W-what are you saying!?" Maki retorted with a blush.

"Come on now~ no need to hide your true feelings, princess or would you prefer to be called Mrs. Yazawa?" Nozomi's face grew a bigger grin as the redhead's face were continuously spawning shades of red on her cute cheeks.

"M-Mou!" Maki's fastened her pace into the woods, forcing Nozomi to catch up.

"H-Hey! It's dangerous to walk fast in here!" she exclaimed.

"What are you sa- ow!" she lost her footing when she collided at full speed with another figure.

"Ow... Hey, watch where you're go- ah..." before she could finish her words, she see's a small petite girl. It seems that she collided with her and it turns out that it was Nico.

"Nico! Finally, I've been looking everywhere for you." Maki pulled Nico from the ground as soon as she managed to stand up after the impact.

"Ow ow ow... You should really watch where you're going, Maki." she pouted.

_Cute... _"Yeah, sorry about that. I met someone named Tojo Nozomi in a mansion where my castle used to stay. It seems that we're in a different realm." she explained to Nico.

"I know that, I had her explain to where I was an hour after I woke up." Nico pointed a girl behind her, her clothing was quite revealing, it was a dark robe that flowed freely on her voluptuous figure revealing some parts of her ample buxom. Her Royal Yellow hair tied in a refined ponytail hairstyle, She gives off a mature aura that attracts even the most innocent men, something that the little Nico can never pull off.

"Ah, it's you, Nishikino Maki." she gave Maki a cold stare before introducing herself. "It's a pleasure to meet you, I am Ayase Eli." she smiled as if that cold stare she gave a while ago had never existed.

"...It's a pleasure to meet you too." Maki smiled back.

_I'm not sure... But I am getting a weird vibe from her... I just can't put my finger into it..._

"Ah... There you are, Maki, please don't run in the forest as you cou- Ah! Eli! So you were in the forest." Nozomi looked at Eli with joy.

_Oh, so she's who Nozomi was referring as __**she **__earlier..._

"Yeah... I was gathering some materials for our next spells, then I saw Nico here wandering mindlessly in the north-east part of this realm." she sighed.

"Oh my, don't tell me you got hurt there Eli, I'd worry sick if something were to happen to you."

"Hah, don't worry about it... It was just a scratch." Eli said as she revealed a light wound that was inflicted to her by a wolf that almost attacked Nico.

"Oh my god, we should hurry back and get you treated, Eli." Nozomi panicked.

"It's alright, I already applied some antiseptic earlier, so we're in no rush." Eli gave her a smile, resulting Nozomi to blush.

_Oh? Does Nozomi... Hmm, we'll find about that soon. _Seeing as this was the only chance to tease Nozomi, Maki gathered the courage and accepted this once in a lifetime chance.

"Hey Nozomi, why are you blushing~ Could it be that you're" Maki crept closer to Nozomi and whispered, "in l-o-v-e with Eli~?"

"W-w-w-w-what are you saying Maki!?" seeing as her teasing was effective, Maki smirked and continued, "Hmm? I was just telling the truth~"

Nozomi's face was soon covered by a dangerous shade of red, covering her face while Eli looks at her with a confused face.

"What's wrong Nozomi? You look like you have a fever or something." She moves closer to Nozomi.

"N-no! Don't look at me! Not now!" Nozomi's face still flushed, she averts her eyes to the direction where nobody can see her blush.

"Nope, you look like you could use some rest." Eli carried Nozomi in a princess carry style, intensifying Nozomi's blushes even further.

"N-Noooo! Put me down!" Nozomi who's been out of character for a while was moving her body back and forth like a baby while Maki has been on a corner ever since, giggling non-stop.

"Hey! Stop that, Nozomi! We'll fall down at thi- ah!"

_*Thud*_

"Ow... Look at what you did, Nozo-" as she opened her eyes, she sees the Emerald shaded orbs that took her breath away. Topaz meets Emerald,with each passing second, their breathing intensifies. Leaning closer towards each other, as their lips were about to collide, the pain of the injury on Eli's upper arm started to take effect. She fainted.

"Eli!" Nozomi, shocked by what happened, she panicked.

"Eli!" Nico and Maki soon followed, they carried Eli away from Nozomi.

_I knew I should've been the one to gather the materials in the north-east part... It's just too dangerous for Eli! _Nozomi blamed herself for Eli's misfortune.

"She's still breathing, show us the way, Nozomi. Time is ticking." Maki said with haste.

"You're right... Let's go... It's not too late, I'm sure the potion's still inside the locked-away chest we hid a long time ago."

Without wasting time, they ran back to the Mansion. Where every second is crucial to Eli's recovery.

* * *

**A/N: With that cliffhanger(gotta love em') I wonder what's gonna happen to Eli~**

**sorry about that Eli ; w; you'll have you ways with Nozomi later. I was about to post this a few hours later but _nooooo _Nico's SR event consumed most of my time, sorry about that(again), I got a Hanayo SR in her chinese outfit though, where did the rice go I wonder. someone explain to me what happened!**


	5. White Trailed Possibilities

**A/N: Hai hai~ so i'm back with another chapter! I had nothing to do really ; w; before you read this chapter, I'd warn you guys that you might be feeling some heartache here, cause you know. stuff happens, but hey~ there's some surprise in the end so, enjoy!**

**(kt . taborada): hmm~ I had my list ready ever since the start of chapter 2 o uo it'll be a loooong Journey~ and yes! Maki's the princess and Nico's the fool(how'd you know! oh right, smart people.)**

**(Dash24zappshift): oh yes more updates shall come soon~ thanks!**

**(equastar): yessu, because it's Maki, she won't mind the Tomatopocalypse to come in a few more year in fact, she'll rejoice as she eats every tomato in the whole world(yay tomato's, tomato juice is really good. I don't get why most people dislike it)**

**(lunarsaber12): Mrs. Yazaw it has such a cute ring to it I can't resist putting that up~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live! Oh look a cat -follows cat-**

* * *

_Tick Tock Tick Tock_

With every second spent, Eli's life force depletes bit by bit. With every twist and turn in the forest, they made haste. As soon as they got out of the dark forest, they exerted more force in every step they made. 20 meters away from the mansion, the groaning Eli, who somehow gained consciousness muttered.

"Hah... Why do you guys look so worried... Such an -cough- injury won't kill me..."

Before Maki could reply, Nozomi, whose pain in her chest was even more painful than what Eli's feeling right now gave Eli a fake smile.

"It's nothing, Eli... We'll get you back on your feet in no time..."

_Yeah... Everything will be alright. _Nozomi thought. 10 meters away from the mansion, the poison of the injury grew even stronger causing Eli to cry in despair. It was painful for Nico and Maki, but it was even more painful for Nozomi. As they saw the Mansion, Nozomi quickly barged inside the room an went straight, the path that Maki did not take.

"Go to the second room in the second floor! I already dispelled the barrier! Hurry!" Nozomi shouted as she gathered the materials for curing Eli.

_Rosemary, Wyvern Ears, Imp's tail, Aloe Vera, Fairy Wings, Dragon's Skewer. That should do it. _She threw these ingredients into the cauldron, mixed them, placed a lid on top of the cauldron and waited for 5 minutes before removing the lid. The result was a flask holding a small amount of green fluid. She rushed up to the second floor, seeing a weakened and pale Eli.

Nozomi sat near Eli and quickly offered the flask.

"Drink it, Elicchi. Quickly, before the poison starts to attack your mind!" Nozomi said. Eli accepted the flask and drank it's content. with it's effect immediately taking effect, the wound on Eli's upper arm started to heal at an alarming rate.

"Phew, I'm glad we weren't too late." Nozomi sighed in relief. Had she been a second too late, Eli would ha-

"Ahhhh! It hurts!" Eli screamed in pain as she clutched her fists on her chest. Without knowing, the poison not only reached her mind, but her heart.

"Elicchi!" Nozomi screamed, having no knowledge in this stage, she begged the heavens to stop this Nightmare from happening, which was not answered.

"Ahhh!" blood started to pour out from Eli's upper arm, then feet, then finally, her chest. The sight was too grotesque, Nozomi covered her eyes, wishing that this was all a dream.

"No...zo...mi..." Eli cried out to her friend, she crawled to where Nozomi was at and muttered, "I...am... So..rry.."

"No... Eli... Don't leave me..." Still covering her eyes, a path of tears were flowing out of Nozomi's eyes.

"No..mi..." giving her all with her final words, she said. "I... Lo... You..." her body soon became a lifeless corpse.

"No...No! Eli!" Nozomi cried out as she pulled Eli's body to her knees. With Nico and Maki, who have seen a friend die in their very own eyes had nothing to say.

_Wait... Nozomi said about a potion earlier... _Nico thought, she then walked towards Nozomi and pulled her back towards her senses.

"Nozomi! What was that potion you talked about earlier?" Nico exclaimed.

_Really? At a time like this? Just how dense can you be, Nico. _Maki sighed as tears were forming on her eyes.

"Huh?... wait... That's it!" Nozomi, who looked like there's is still hope stood up, putting Eli's body down beforehand rushed outside and started digging below a certain tree.

"What are you doing Nozomi!" Nico shouted. She received no reply from Nozomi, who was focused and determined in doing her task. After a few minutes...

_*Tink*_

"Ah, finally." Nozomi pulled the chest back to the Earth's ground. It was a huge green trunk, one could say that it was a capsule used to store childhood memories. She typed in the password and within a second of verification, the lock popped out. She opened the trunk and searched for the thing that she's looking for.

"Ah... Here it is." she pulled out a weird looking bottle, one that has an infinity sign imprinted on it. She rushed back inside the mansion and pulled back Eli onto her knees.

"What's that, Nozomi?" Nico asked with a doubting look on her face.

"This here's the Bottle of Endless Possibilities, taking a sip from it will change what your life almost completely, it's also been said that it can bring the dead back to life. It's been kept under that tree due to it's strong ability that can bend the state of reality itself, however, once someone drinks from it, it goes back to it's dormant state, leaving it useless for 20 years." Nozomi explained.

"So... It will bring Eli back to life, right?" Maki asked as she played with her curly locks as a sign of curiosity.

"It can, and it cannot." Nozomi said with a sad expression.

"Fweh? What do you mean Nozomi?" Nico replied as she was confused on Nozomi's answer.

"...Living by its name, the Bottle of Endless Possibilities, it can bring a dead person back to life. But it can also mean it can turn Eli into something worse, it can turn her to an animal, and object, or even worse. A monster, if that were to happen, we'll have no choice but to exterminate her." Nozomi answered with her face looking down, showing her uneasiness.

They were all uneasy with this option, but it did not stop Nozomi.

"It's all or nothing and i'm not gonna regret it. I'll bring back Eli, no matter what it takes." determined, she opened Eli's mouth and poured the liquid that the bottle was holding. Nozomi yet again placed Eli's body down to the ground and took a few steps backward.

"...now what?" Nico asked. Maki, who's been quiet ever since then has been looking at Nico's body ever since.

"Hey Nico-chan."

"yeah?"

"Why are you naked by the way."

"Uwah! I just noticed." She grabbed a piece of clothing from the hangar, the shirt was big enough to cover her upper body to lower knees.

After a few minutes, no changes have yet been seen on Eli's body.

"So I take it that it did nothing?" Nico muttered as her patience was getting short.

"...we wait longer." Nozomi replied as she continued starting at Eli.

_Please... Come back Eli, I need you._

Soon, light began to come of out Eli's body, illuminating the whole mansion.

"Wah! It's so bright!" the three covered their eyes as the phenomenon took place, Eli's body was floating from the ground, various changes underwent on her body, such as having a silkier hair, the expansion of her gluteus maximus and other various things. As her body descended to the ground, she regained consciousness, surprised that she came back to life.

"Eli!" Nozomi jumped towards Eli and gave her a big hug. Eli's face covered with blush, she hugged her in return.

"Welcome back, Eli." with these words escaping Nozomi's mouth, Eli replied.

"I'm home."

Nico and Maki, still shocked from what they had just happened took a few seconds of idle glancing before realizing that Eli came back.

"Ah... Eli!" the two said in unison as they rushed towards Eli, causing both of them to bump on each other.

"Seriously, watch where you are going, Nico-chan!" Maki shouted as she rubbed her bum.

"No _you _watch where you're going!" Nico retorted.

"Now now, let's all get along and be intimate with each other, shall we?" Nozomi pulled both Nico and Maki closer, causing both of their lips to graze each other.

_Ahhh! She almost kissed me! _was the thought the both of them had in mind.

Eli was amused as she sees Nozomi, Nico and Maki getting along. She tried to put her hand on the hilt of her sword which resulted a lightning shock pain on her body, she immediately pulled back but the change of her facial expression was too slow for Nozomi not to notice.

"What's wrong, Eli?" Nozomi asked worriedly.

_She did save my life... And my heart. It's best not to lie to the person I love._

"It seems that I can no longer wield this sword of mine." she explained.

"Huh?" the three thought that Eli was just kidding, but for Nozomi, she knew that Eli was telling the truth, she pulled the sword out of Eli's scabbard with ease.

"What? How'd you do that Nozomi?" Eli asked.

"I did it like you usually do." Nozomi replied with a smile. Eli tried to grab the sword back but the pain jolted back into her systems once again.

"Argh... What's with that sword." A note soon fell down from the ceiling, as if it was magically controlled. As soon as it landed on the ground, Nico grabbed it from below and said the words out loud.

_You are now a new person, Ayase Eli. One who used to fight in the dark will now fight in the light, one who used to deceive everybody will now speak the truth regardless of the situation, one who used to be binded by the chains of death shall now be set free. You are no longer binded by this sword, you are one, you are free._

"I am free..." Eli, strucked with the thought. She gave Nozomi a huge hug.

Realizing the hardships of Eli, Nozomi hugged her in return, she gave signals to Nico and Maki if they could give both of them some private time, which they quickly nodded indicating a yes.

Nico, who quietly closed the door of the room sees Maki's face covered in red, by the time they got out of the mansion, Nico led Maki to the nearest place where a tree covers them from anything.

"Is something wrong Maki? You're face has been looking kinda red ever since we walked out of the room." Nico asked curiously.

"N-Nothing's wrong, it's just that..." Maki paused, causing Nico's curiosity level to rise.

"Because?"

"I-It's because..." with her face completely covered in Red, she finally gives up.

"It's because i've been wonder what they're... Doing inside the room." she covered her face as soon as she finished talking, leaving Nico a few seconds before she her mind registered what Maki is talking about.

"Ahh~ Young Maki here is thinking about something dirty, now is she?" Nico said with a teasing tone, causing Maki's face to become darker than red.

"I-I'm not!" as Nico moved closer to Maki, she can hear her heartbeat beating at a very fast pace, unable to control her urges any longer. She grabbed Nico and they both landed on a huge pile of fallen leaves.

"Ow ow, what do you think you're doing Ma-" Nico's words were abruptly stopped as Maki's tender lips landed on hers. Her eyes widened as a result, she tried to resist but her heart tells her not to. Nico indulged on Maki's actions, taking full advantage of it, she pushed her lips even deeper. Her tongue soon finds it's way inside Maki's mouth.

"Mmm!" Maki let out a moan, something that Nico had always wanted to hear.

"I never knew Maki could let out such a cute moan."

"S-shut up." Maki pouted, which Nico finds it cute. Now it was her giving Maki a sweet, passionate kiss, as time passed by, their salivas now coating some parts of the leaves below. They took their time in enjoying each other's love for each other.

"Ha-ah... Maki..." Nico panted, grasping for air.

"Ha-ah... What is it, Ni...ah...co." Maki asked, taking in more air than Nico.

"I...ah...Love you." Nico said as she gave Maki a peck to the cheek.

"O-of all times." with her face taking in more shades of red. She pulled Nico and whispered into her ear.

"I Love you too." causing Nico to blush from cheek to ears. As Maki find this cute, she licked Nico's ear, causing her to body to jolt. Seeing this reaction, Maki whispers,

"Let's save the rest for later." she gives another kiss, a short but still holding the same amount of feelings to Nico before heading back to the mansion.

As Maki was about to open the door in the second floor, she heard Eli calling them down inside the middle path. The voice was coming from the second room, so she opened the room and sees Nozomi, chanting words that seemed inaudible while Eli watches her in the back, double checking if the star formation was free from damages. Maki and Nico entered the room, still gazing at Nozomi.

"Ah, don't worry about her, she's doing this to send you back to your own realm, if I recalled it correctly. It was called the équilibré realm, where everything is fair and balance." Eli explained.

"We're also gonna join you guys in search for the other 5." she added.

"Other five?" Nico replied.

"Yes, other five. We currently have you, Maki, Nozomi and me. It will be a tough and long journey, but i'm sure you're all ready for this." she smiled at Nico, it was a genuine smile.

_I wonder who the other 5 are... _Nico thought in her mind.

"Ah, it's ready."

A portal suddenly spawned on the wall which surprised both Nico and Maki.

"So, are you guys ready to go back and start your new journey?" Eli asked to Nico and Maki, which was quickly replied with a "Mhm!" in unison.

The four stood near the portal and together, they walked forward.

* * *

**A/N: Don't kill me for that, I just had to do it ; w; so, I wonder who'll be the first person who they'll be meeting,I don't know, leave it up to your imagination till then! right now i'm writing a drabble for that "private time" of Nozomi and Eli... stop thinking of perverted thoughts! (gotchu there~) till then~ tah tah~ *sparkles away with the cat***


	6. Black Trailed Hope

**A/N: Nothing to say here really. I was so busy playing Love Live SIF and Saya no Uta that I almost forgot to upload this DX sorry about that /shot**

**(KidoTsubomi22): I didn't really want to kill her ; w; my mind just thinks of stuff that makes me want to cry *sniff***

**(Dash24zappshift): NicoMaki forever! nothing shall break their yuri bonds mwehehehe :3 yes i'll be making more of them in the future~**

**(lunarsaber12): who knows~ and yes! A-Rise will be in this story as something that you'll be looking forward to! **

**with that said, i'll go cry now as I re-watch Love Live Q u Q**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live! **

* * *

As soon as Nico and Maki left the room, Nozomi brought Eli to the other room which was illuminated by a single light bulb. They took a seat on the chairs at the north-east corner of the room, giving them some time to relax. Every now and then, Nozomi and Eli would take glances at each other.

A few moments later, the two's words crossed each other.

"So about tha-"

"I'm sorry fo-"

This exchange earned both of them a giggle, Eli looked at Nozomi with glee.

"You go first." Eli said.

"All right, regarding that note...what did it mean by "binded by the chains of death"?" Nozomi asked.

"Ah...about that." Eli looked below.

_Since it's her... I guess I can tell her my story._

Gathering the courage she could ever muster, she looked into Nozomi in the eyes and said.

"I guess it's the right time to tell you about my past..."

"Your past?" Nozomi wondered, since the Eli she knows is a mature, patient and honest person.

"Yes... It all started back when..." Eli started to reminiscence her past.

Eli was your happy go lucky swordswoman, an energetic one at that of the équilibré realm(just like Nico). She was quite the model for most adventurers that she have had met. She enjoyed the thrills of being in the brink of danger. The most unforgettable memory for her was back when she had to slay a dragon on her own due to her teammates abandoning her. It was the memory that changed her whole life, it made her lose the ability to trust others. in the long run, it turned her into a "lost" human.

A "lost" human is when a person consumes too much despair and hatred that her own humanity starts to break down, when a "lost" human's humanity completely loses it, the person is to be transported to the Maléfices realm as soon as possible to prevent casualties.

Within 20 days after she was sent to the Maléfices realm, Eli remained in a calm state. She wandered mindlessly in the realm, as if looking for even the smallest glint of hope. As she wandered through the north-east part of the realm, she saw a sword on the ground.

_What the... A sword? _She slowly walked towards the sword and picked it up. As soon as it was on her arms, a quick jolt of pain came gushing down on her body. "Ahh!" she screamed, voices soon reached her mind, overlapping her thoughts, however, only one voice was clear enough to her.

_You are the enigmatic knight, with this blade you hold into your hands. The truths you hear shall be lies. The truth you seek is no longer present. You are the future to ones destruction. You are to carry this sword high and send forth death to every living being you see. You are death._

Her mind repeated those words multiple times. With each time causing a strain on her mind, she fainted deep within the woods, unnoticed.

_Nhm... Warmth...? _She thought in her mind, as she woke up from her dream state. She saw _her. _A woman with mauve shaded pig tails caressing her head, it made her wonder why such an act made her feel _whole. _She didn't mind it, she didn't mind it at all.

"Ah, it seems that you have woken up." the woman said with a smile visible on her cheeks.

_This woman... _Eli thought as she remained Hostile towards the woman.

"I am Tojo Nozomi, as I was gathering some materials for my next alchemy, I saw you in this exact spot, unconscious." she added.

_Unconscious? No wonder my head feels somewhat fuzzy... So wait, if I am still in the same location, where was that sw- _ her thoughts were interrupted as she saw the sword on her hips, sheathed. She tried to pull it off but it did not budge.

"Hmm? Your sword is stuck?" the woman pulled the sword from the scabbard but was somewhat stopped by a mysterious force.

_This sword is for you to hold and swing only, if you were to lose the blade, you are to lose your life, you are binded by the chains of death. _The voice returned back into Eli's mind, causing her to go down into her knees and shivered from fear.

"Hey! You don't look okay... Let's go to the mansion, I'm sure that you can recover there." Nozomi said as she carried Eli to the mansion.

Half an hour had past, the silence continues to strike both of their ears. With Eli feeling uneasy of this, she took the initiative for the first time.

"Hey... Why are you being so nice to me..?" Eli asked as Nozomi's eyes widened.

"Hmm? Do you really need a reason to save someone from death?" the words struck Eli's heart, it pulled a single string, bringing her a part of her humanity.

"...You're really kind for an alchemist... I used to think that all of them are just users and do not care if any of their allies die..." Eli sighed at her belief.

"Not everyone... There are some, it's just that most of them were killed by the evil alchemists... Just like my parents..." Nozomi looked down as she recalled the sight of the torture of her parents in front of her.

"S..sorry about that... I didn't mean to bring up such a sensitive topic."

"It's okay, it's all in the past." Nozomi gave Eli a smile, tugging another string in her heart.

"Ah, here we are."

Eli examined the mansion, it looks mysterious and old, but it gives off the aura of a cozy home.

"Let's go in, shall we?" Nozomi asked.

_I would not mind living with you forever. _Eli thought as she nodded to Nozomi.

By the time Eli finished her flashback, Nozomi was left speechless.

"...So?" Eli asked.

"...I found the last part so cute~ where you thought of not minding living with me forever." She giggled.

"N-Nozom-" her words were interrupted by a kiss. She did not resist, in fact. She tried to keep it as long as possible, with their tongues coiling each other. They indulged on their long awaited kiss. After a few minutes of kissing, they pulled back to take a breath for air.

"Ha...ah... I would not mind living with you forever either, Eli." she pulled in Eli to another kiss.

_Nozomi... _Her mind was filled with the love of Nozomi's kisses.

In both of their minds, the words _I love you_ rebounded. Now satisfied, they pulled back and both said the four words "I Love You Nozomi/Eli" in unison.

"Now, let's get ready for our new adventure? We wouldn't want to keep Nico and Maki waiting." Nozomi asked.

"Yeah, let's go."

They fixed themselves up and headed to the ritual room, holding hands.

* * *

**A/N: Feel free to PM me or review about this~ I rushed. I know. Kill me.**

**have you ever dreamt of a gang of Maki chasing you because you were holding a tomato? yea, just dreamt of it.**

**I'll be uploading Chapter 6 before I sleep(probably 13 hours from now, i'm still halfway done silleh Kuu.) **


	7. Blue Awaited Shores

**A/N: Okay~ Remember when I told you that I'll be uploading this before I sleep? (if not, go back to the previous chapter, fanfiction didn't bring the fanfic back up to the list 3) I lied~(mayb wanted to sleep though) and my proofreader messaged me longer than usual. so heh~ dun kill me ; w; **

**this turned out to be somewhat longer than usual(something for you guys) and since there's school tomorrow, I can't update as fast as I usually did **

**this past week. With that said, enjoy this chapter I made (warning: this chapter may be bad for your heart since it was already bad enough for Maki, thank god she didn't faint.)**

**Disclaimer: Someone already owns Love Live!**

* * *

The Blue light slowly pulled the four girls, with their eyes closed. The sensation crawls into their skin. In an instant, they were transported back below the tree. The scenery looks the same before Nico and Maki left, concluding that the hours spent in the other realm was only a split second to this world.

"Hmm... So Maki, do you want to go to your castle before we depart?" Nico asked as she looked up at the orange sky.

"Yea, I'll need to tell the maids that I won't be coming back for a while." Maki immediately walked towards the castle but was pulled back by Nico.

"You shouldn't be leaving your new lover you know~" Nico smirked as Maki's face turned to mush from heat.

"W-w-w-who are you c-calling l-l-lover!" Maki stuttered as Nico's teasing continued.

"You know~ someone who's just beside you." she wrapped her arms on Maki's left arm causing her to blush even more, amusing Eli and Nozomi.

As they walked towards the castle, Nozomi explained to them about the journey they will be having.

"Okay, first off. No public display of affection." she commanded.

"Ehhhh~ why not~" Nico complained.

"Because it will disturb the other's who will be joining us soon." following the right logic, the other two agreed on this while Nico pouted.

"But oh, teasing is always allowed(and advised)." this rule gave Eli and Maki a chill down their spine while giving Nico a huge smirk on her face.

"Nozomi!" Eli pouted.

"Now now Elicchi~ teasing is an art that must be used at all times." Nozomi patted the pouting Eli, earning a blush by the blonde.

The three waited outside the castle to wait for Maki. By curiosity, Nico then proceeded on using a certain rule implemented just now.

"So, what did you guys do while me and Maki were gone?" Nico asked, directing the question to Nozomi.

"Hmm? We did what we usually do~" not planning on falling for Nico's trap, she crept closer to Eli and proceeded on playing with her Royal Yellow hair.

"Tell her Elicchi~ tell her what we usually do" Nozomi in a teasing manner.

"N-Nozomi!" as soon as Nozomi and Nico finished their share of laughs, Maki came out of the castle holding a bag which holds tons of medicines and potions.

"What's this for?" Nico asked, Maki looked into Nico's eyes and pushed the bag into Nico's arms.

"It's for you. Who knows what will happen if you won't take care of yourself." Maki explained, averting her eyes from Nico.

"My My~ It seems that Maki's worried about Nico getting hurt in the process." Nozomi while giggling for a little while.

"N-No I'm not! I just don't want to see someone drop dead on during the journey!" Maki exclaimed.

"Hey! I'm not gonna die that easily!" Nico retorted back to Maki. With the heat of battle igniting between the two, Nozomi barged in the middle to stop the two.

"Rule Number 3, No fighting within your teammates, especially with the ones you love."

The two tsundere's face soon turned into something like a pink coated blob as soon as the last word was mentioned.

"...If you say so." the two said in unison, which was rewarded by Nozomi's smile.

"Alright. Let's see, the first person we'll be looking for is..." she grabbed a pocketbook from her pockets which was not noticeable at first glance.

"Ah, there. We'll be looking for the gunslinger first, It's said that her beauty is out of this world, with her skills in aiming as topnotch, grabbing her in first will be really help us in this long journey." she closed and returned the book into her pocket.

"Wait... So that's it? Was there a name written on that book?" Nico asked.

"Nope, we have to find for that person by ourselves, I already told you guys that finding for people with _great potential _is not your easy everyday task. It was already hard enough to know their role." Nozomi explained to justify her lack of information.

"I suppose you're right... What we guys waiting for, should we check at Umi town first? It's the closest from here." Nico said as she points the east location with her fingers.

"Yeah, let's go check that first." Eli replied, she glanced on the other two and nodded as a reply.

Nico lead the way to Umi town with the same path that she and Maki took a few days ago. It took them a few hours before reaching the town only to see a commotion in the city square a few yards away. they rushed to see what's the problem.

"No! The Yuuki Family can serve us better than the Sonoda Family! Have you even seen someone of the Sonoda's do something about our problems!? I bet nobody has even seen them in person!" the man shouted, earning boos and yea's.

"The Sonoda Family have been dealing everything at the background! Couldn't you even understand that!? They are the reason why our town is at peace! They are the reason why we are even living in this peaceful town!" the woman retorted also earning boos and yea's

"This looks bad." Eli said to the others.

"Yeah, should we go and help them in resolving this issue?" Nozomi asked. They thought about it for a few seconds.

"...No, we should not waste time in dealing with such controversies." Nico answered.

"No, we should be helping them. If we can't help a single town, do you think we can save the whole world?" Maki retorted.

"She's right Nico. Who knows, we might even find that person with _great potential_." Eli said to Nico. Within a few seconds, Nico changed her mind and finally agreed.

They head towards the center and asked the people what's the problem.

"Sir, could you please explain what's the commotion all about?" Eli formally asked.

"Ah. a few days ago, someone named Yuuki Anju visited this place and showed her leadership skills a few moments before an unknown organization invaded our town. fascinated by her maturity, natural talent in commanding an army and dazzling looks. Rumors are also spreading saying that the Sonoda family have abandoned this town since they were absent from defending this town igniting conflict between the ones who support the Yuuki's and Sonoda's." he explained.

"That's bad..." Eli clearing up her thought, she looked back to Maki, Nico and Nozomi.

"So...?" Nico asked. Eli pondered for a second before looking back and headed towards the middle of the huge crowd.

"Hey! Eli! Where are you go-" Nico's words were soon canceled by the shouts of the villagers. Eli soon reached her way in the middle of the circle. She took a huge breath and shouted.

"KEEP QUIET!" this gained the full attention of a quiet audience.

"Look I know that all of you are doubting the Sonoda family, but you guys don't even know the true intentions of the Yuuki's. You are all uncertain of who's side to is to pick since both of them have done good to this town. " Eli declared.

"What are you implying?" said by someone in the audience.

"I'm saying that all of you are confused and we're here to help you. All of you are not alone. We are here to meet both sides and resolve this conflict. We are here to bring peace to this town once again. We assure you that we'll help you all with the best of our abilities." amazed by Eli's strong will and determination, people's hearts wavered and supported Eli's idea. The crowd soon spread out, leaving the 4 girls with a huge task.

"So... Where are we going to find _them _anyway?" Nozomi asked.

"I don't know really..." Eli sighed, still tense from delivering her speech.

"Wait... Sonoda... Sonoda... Oh! We actually met someone named Sonoda Umi a few days ago." Nico muttered.

"You did!?"

"Yeah, me and Maki did while we had our alone time in the beach." Nico teased.

"H-Hey! Stop making it sound like it was indecent!" Maki said as her face was beginning to fluster.

"Hmmm~ do explain the every detail Nicocchi." Nozomi joined in the frey.

"Well, it all started with Maki getting we-"

"Stop ittttttttttt!"

Eli headed to the Town's blacksmith since she no longer had a weapon to defend herself with. Nico and Maki went to the stands to buy for food and such while Nozomi went to certain shops in search for materials for alchemy. Eli gained access to a secret warehouse where weapons were refined by the greatest blacksmiths of all time. Most of the weapons seemed to have not fit her build except for a sword that lights up the whole warehouse.

"You have a good eye there, Missy. That there is the Elude Sigma. Due to it's lightweight and heavy swings, it's one of a kind that brings forth the destruction of foes, are you interested?" the blacksmith said as he musters up his pride, he probably made the sword.

"Hmm... I need to do a test run with it first." Eli said, the blacksmith agreed to her notion.

They went to a nearby forest, swings and stabs the air at certain intervals, the weapon fits her build perfectly. They went back to the warehouse and talked about their deal.

"I'd like to take this sword, what's the price for it?" Eli asked the blacksmith who was mysteriously looking down the floor was soon covered with dark fog.

_The price is...your SOUL! _The blacksmith said in an unrecognized voice. Black vectors immediately came out of the fog finding it's way on Eli's neck, arms and feet.

"Nnnn!" Eli tried to struggle as her life was slowly sucked out of her body. The more she tried to struggle, the more she finds it hopeless.

_Nozomi... _Her consciousness began to fade...

_Bzzt_

She found the blacksmith's body unconscious on the floor. She looked up to see Nozomi with a worried look. The Mauve haired woman ran to Eli's arms, giving her a warm hug. Nozomi's body were shaking.

"Eli... You shouldn't wander alone, especially with _a man..._" Nozomi said with a worried look, Eli found it cute and irresistible.

"Sorry about that, Nozomi." Eli gave her a peck to the lips as she asked for forgiveness earning Nozomi a blush.

"...Just don't do it again... Okay? If you need someone to be alone with, y-you can always tell me..." Nozomi hid her face from embarrassment as soon as she finished her declaration.

_Cute... _Eli smiled as she sees a Nozomi acting differently.

"We should leave here as soon as possible... Forget the payment, I already deleted the memory of this guy about you." Nozomi grabbed Eli's hand and headed out of the warehouse, meeting up with Nico and Maki inside one of the stalls they were checking out.

"This looks good..." Nico picked out some high quality shallots, a pack of bacon, eggs, a large amount of pasta and many more ingredients.

"What are you going to make with those Ingredients Nicocchi?" Nozomi asked.

"Fettuccini Carbonara. I wanted to let Maki have a taste of it and see if she can handle the flavor." Nico explained.

"Oh my... Are you preparing yourself to be a good wife for Maki-chan?" It seems that Nozomi's teasing switch has turned on. This question instantly flared the cheeks of Nico.

"W-w-w-what a-are you saying Nozomi! I c-can't be a wife for Maki!" Nico stuttered.

"Why not Nicocchi~?"

"Maki's more fit to be my w-wife, that's why!" Nico confessed, earning stares and kyaa's from the villagers.

_M-m-m-me!? As Nico's w-wife!? T-there's no way she just s-said it r-right!? _Maki's thoughts began to cluster up inside.

_I-If I am going to be the wife... I'll have to wait for her at home everyday... And w-when she gets back home... I'll have to say "__**gohan to ofuro ... soretomo ... wa..ta..shi ?**__" ahhh! That's too embarasssing! _ With her face on maximum red mode, her thoughts were blocking everyone's words. The only sentence that she was able to hear was from Nico before passing out which was "Marry me, Maki!".

As Maki regained consciousness, she sees the dark night sky. She surveyed the area, it seems that they're in the coast of the beach of Umi town.

_What am I... _She stood up but was pulled down by someone's arm.

"Just lie on my lap, Maki..." Nico said as pint of pink were somewhat visible on her cheeks.

_A-am I in a dream? If so, Kami-sama, please let me stay in this dream forever._

She closed her eyes and fell into slumber.

"She's grown quite attached to you ever since we've left the other realm Nico, I wonder what you guys did while I told you guys to go outside~?" Nozomi teased.

"W-we didn't do anything... In particular..." Nico averted her eyes, dodging the question.

A few minutes later, the food that Nico prepared was done.

"Food's ready, Eli, can you grab the utensils I bought in my bag?" Nico whispered, fearing that the sleeping Maki will wake up if she shouts.

Eli nodded and checked Nico's bag...

_..2...3...4...5? What the... _Eli wondered.

"Hey Nico, why's there enough for 5 people?" Eli asked.

"Just put them on the table, you'll see why soon." Nico replied.

Shrugging the thought, Eli just decided to just go along with it. She carefully arranged the utensils.

Nico gave the pan to Nozomi, asking her to evenly share the carbonara to each plate, which she accepted.

Giving a few more minutes for Maki to rest, Nico stroked Maki's Imperial Red hair softly, not noticing Nozomi and Eli's smiles as she enjoyed it.

"Maki... Dinner's getting cold. Be a good girl and wake up, okay?" Nico whispered into Maki's ear.

"Ahh.. E-eh!?" Maki quickly jumped from Nico's lap.

_I-I-It wasn't a dream! _Maki thought as a blush formed on her cheeks.

They took a seat and said their prayers before eating, as everyone took in their first bite. Their eyes widened up.

"So~ How's the cooking of Nico Nii~" Nico asked

"mmm!" Eli harasho'd as the flavor seeps into her taste buds.

"Cooked to perfection~ can you teach me how to cook this later, Nicocchi?" Nozomi smiled as she placed her hand to her chin while chewing.

"Sure, why not." Nico replied.

_I want her to make her my wife now... _Maki thought as she continued chewing.

"Hmm? Maki?" Nico crept closer to Maki, waiting for an answer.

"...Make for me more next time..." Maki said as she tried to avoid eye contact from Nico.

_Bingo~ _Nico thought.

As they took in their second bite, a woman emerged from the sea. With her Azure hair reflecting the moon's rays, her delicate fingers still wet from emerging. Her bikini perfectly attached to her proportions. Her amber eyes shines just like the sauce covering the carbonara. The same woman who Nico envied because of her body.

"It's fancy seeing you again, Nico and Maki. It seems that you found new companions with you." Umi bowed.

"I'm Sonoda Umi, pleased to meet you in this fine night." she (re)introduced herself to them.

Nozomi and Eli took this opportunity to introduce themselves to Umi.

"I'm Tojo Nozomi, and this is Ayase Eli. We came from another realm, the Maléfices realm to be exact." Nozomi explained.

"Ah, Is there a reason why you guys moved into this realm?" Umi asked as she took a seat from the extra chair with the carbonara on front of her.

"Hmm... This looks delicious... Is this for me?" Umi asked, Nico nodded and told her to dig in.

"So, while you eat, I'll be explaining why we came into this realm... You see it first started..."

As Nozomi explained Umi every bit of detail, marks of red were visible on her cheeks when Nozomi got into the teasing parts and somewhat felt teary when Nozomi told her when Eli died once but was brought back to life because of the power of "love" which made Eli choke on her food and gave Nozomi a blushing stare.

"Hmm... I see... So this town's doubting my family because we were not there when someone... or _something _attacked them a few days ago..." Umi placed her finger on her chin, deep in thought.

"Well, a few days ago... Back in my home early morning, around 20 men invaded our land...er... Territory. It was a small amount but they dealt enough damage to render half of our forces useless. We're still in the state of recovery, which explains why we were not able protect the city..." Umi explained.

"That's awful... What did they look like?" Eli asked Umi.

"I remember a dark fog covering them... I wasn't able to see their faces because I was kept inside the castle... Their faces were somewhat... Weird and grotesque to begin with..." Umi fell sick as she remembered her one of those monsters entered the castle that targeted her but was protected by her Father, resulting his death.

"...Otou-san..." Umi broke down as tears fell from her amber eyes. The despair of losing a family member is too great for her, but has vowed to gain vengeance. Eli comforted her until she her tears ran dry.

"I'm sorry... I just get too emotional if it's about my dad... He's always been there for me... But now..." Umi muttered.

"It's okay, Umi-chan... We'll help you in resolving this... we're your friends, remember? I'm sure we can bring your father's death to justice." Nico said with a smile, comforting Umi in the process.

"You're right..." she wiped her tears and stood up. "Now that I'm ready, want me to take you undersea?" this gave the others a questionable look, seeing how illogical can a person breath underwater but since magic exists in different realms, there's no reason to contradict the possibility.

"Sure, but how do we breath underwater exactly?" Nico asked. Umi just smiled at her question, she offered them a necklace. It a transparent shell showing it's pearl inside it.

It seems to be holding a mystic magic inside.

"Wear it as soon as we submerge, if you are to wear it on the ground, you'll be grasping for air." Umi explained which was answered by an "okay" from all four.

As they entered deep into the sea. They wore the necklace which Umi gave to them. The pearl showed a glint of light, indicating that the necklace's power is set on. They followed Umi as she went deeper. Nico, finding it difficult to swim was guided by Maki.

"H-Hey! I know how to swim you know!" Nico tried to push Maki away but failed to do so as Maki hugged her.

"Trust me on this, I don't want you to hurt yourself." Maki continued to hug Nico and followed the others.

_I wonder how many times have they already broken our rule already... Oh well, it's cute anyway... Too bad I can't do it with Eli at the moment. _Nozomi sighed, getting the attention of Eli.

"What's wrong, Nozomi?" Eli asked.

"I just wanted to share the same warmth with Eli like what Nico and Maki are doing at the moment..." Nozomi replied.

"M-Maybe later..." Eli said as she blushed.

"Eheh~ All right." she hugged Eli's arm and whispered into her ear. "I guess this will do for now~"

"N-Nozomi!" Eli shouted as she blushed.

_All of them... Why are they doing such embarrassing things! Indecent! Embarrassing! _Umi said as her face have been blushing ever since Maki made her move.

After half an hour of swimming down, they finally reached Umi's territory.

"Welcome to Sonotopia~" Umi said as she looked back to the group.

"Wow... It's so shiny." Maki said as Nico was too busy feeling her warmth.

"It shines just like the eyes of Eli~" Nozomi teased, causing the helpless Eli to blush even more.

Sonotopia, a vast land that shines just like the morning sea. Numerous people were outside of their houses, it looks like a nice place to live in. Everyone has a smile on their faces, you could say that it's a peaceful country. Umi pointed out the huge castle.

"That's where I live in, let's go." Umi bluntly said.

As they swam their way to the castle, someone attacked them from above. They dodged the vectors that came attacking them.

"It's them again!" Umi shouted.

Every citizen of the Sonotopia retreated back to their homes and knights started to come out of the royal castle.

"This looks like a nice place to live in... It's so beautiful it makes me want to see it's end." said by a woman behind the numerous dark fog covered monsters.

"What should we do now, Umi-chan?" Nico asked in a panicking tone.

"...I'll grab my weapons. You guys support me as I rush inside the castle." without a moment to spare, she swam at full speed into the castle. followed by the other four, the knights engaged the monsters into a long bloody battle.

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**A/N: nyehehe~ I wonder which weapons will Umi be pulling off from her castle~ **

**in case some of you don't know, ****gohan to ofuro ... soretomo ... wa..ta..shi ? means "do you want to eat dinner? take a bath...or...m-e(wa-ta-shi)?" **

**I can't stop myself from putting that in, I'm sorry. Now, I'll be here waiting for your reviews(if you're gonna post any!*sob*)**

**P.S I cried when I got another Kotori SR from my premium recruitment, Y U NO NICO!?**


	8. Blue Awaited Shores II

**A/N: Sorry for the long(i think) wait! had constant writer's block ; w; + school, this is a somewhat serious-ish chapter(idk, you tell me.)**

**(Dash24zappshift): yes~ action~ something that I suck at! *slaps self***

**(CleideJam): thanks for reading this story from a newbie ; w; and Umi's weapon will be revealed in this chapter!**

**(Kurama16): don't worry, NicoMaki's are here and there no matter where you go~**

**(KidoTsubomi22): with the current SR Maki, time to spend these Lovecas *prepares wallet***

**(lunarsaber12): Sonotopia was just something I thought of at the last second, give me your Nico SR Dx I need to prepare my Nico army badly.**

**(LiulfrKeahi): I know they'll be wives if they were to ever marry, I just can't help but put that skit in that chapter, sorry bout that = w=. I'm also**

** sorry if writing some text in Japanese, I'll try to avoid to making these mistakes in the future. I found it really helpful that you pointed these out to me, I **

**appreciate it.**

**(kuro): No problemo~ NicoMaki will always be cute~**

**Now, without wasting more of your time. I'll be closing this A/N for now...after the disclaimer.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live! i'm pretty sure everyone knows this by now. **

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As the knights began to pour out of the gate by tens, Umi still maintained her full speed nearly grazing every knight who's blocking her path. With every twist and turn, her afterimages were seen from a distance as if she was a ghost. The other four tried their best to keep up with Umi but felt like it was futile as her afterimages started to disappear.

They maintained their speed and successfully swam past the still overflowing knights from the gate. The insides of the castle was spectacular, something that was out of this world. With the chandeliers sparkling as if it was newly cleaned, the sparkly white tiles below them showing their own reflection as they looked closely. Furniture giving its own unique way to represent itself, it truly fits the utopia scenery.

"Woah... I bet all of us could live in this huge castle forever!" Nico was jumping as the adrenaline of fun rushes into her brain.

"We could... But this is Umi-san's home, we should be careful with her things here, all of it looks so fragile and expensive..." Eli sighed. "I wonder, where did Umi-san go anyway? She was such a fast swimmer that it's impossible for us to catch up with her." she thought.

_*Crash*_ hearing this sound, everyone knew that it was not something to be happy of. Nico stood there as she shivers from the thought of seeing Umi's seething death stare. Everyone let out a sigh as this event has passed. "Stupid Nico... Stop being a klutz." Maki said which was retorted as Nico said, "I'm not a klutz!" leaving that problem in a standstill, Eli shouted as loud as she can, "Umi! Where are you?" her voice rebounded to the walls which soon reached Umi who was in the 4th floor. "Oh, I'm in the 4th floor in the 3rd room!" she shouted back.

"All right!" Eli looked back to the group, gave signals and then proceeded to heading to the upper floors. As they swam to each floor, they noticed that every floor had their own shades of blue, different interiors and purposes. The second floor was filled with kitchen utilities hanging on the sides, which indicates that this is the kitchen. Each of this floor's background was baby blue coated. The 3rd floor was colored Navy Blue showing only one door that seems to be locked. Without having a proper reason and permission to enter, they ignored this floor and then proceeded to the 4th floor. It was a Powder Blue colored floor, they proceeded to the 3rd door which Umi said she was in. As they slowly opened the door, they didn't see Umi anywhere.

"Umi? Where are you?" the four said in unison with no further response coming from Umi. They surveyed the room in the search for the "missing" Umi. Nico checked the drawers which was a place where hiding is impossible due to its small size. Eli checked the windows to check the status of the fight, it looked like they were fighting a losing war. Maki checked below the bed with no sight of Umi. Seeing no available clues as to where Umi was, Nozomi let out a heavy sigh as she rested on the wall. Within a few seconds the Bed started to rise surprising Maki in the process. As they checked on what Nozomi discovered, they see an entrance which showed nothing but a ladder and darkness. Could it be a secret passage? Having no other clues to rely on, they took this single clue in searching for Umi.

"Hey Elicchi, want to give it a try?" Nozomi smirked as she looked mischievously into Eli's eyes.

"N-No!" Eli shivered in fear as the thoughts of her entering such a dark place slowly consumed her approached her and handed a flashlight while the others wished godspeed to this oh so brave Eli. A few seconds later...

_You so owe me lots of hugs and kisses later Nozomi..._ She thought as she slowly proceeded on climbing down to with her _greatest fear_. The deeper she finds herself into darkness, the scarier it is for her as she feels the darkness seeping into her.

_Eep! Oh yeah, I almost forgot that Nico gave me a flashlight.._. She pulled the flashlight out from her back pocket and flicked the switch on. As she points the light to her direction, she sees was some baggage left uncleaned filled with molds. The sight was too unsatisfying for her to keep her from being reminded of the darkness. As she felt the feet touching the ground. She let go of the ladder and started on searching for clues.

She aimed her flashlight from left to right to trick her eyes from seeing less darkness. She walked forward as she surveyed the area. All she saw were piles of baggage, just... Tons of baggage with molds growing on it. After a few minutes of walking, she began to hear a faint voice.

_Uuuuuu _this nearly made Eli run for her life, thinking that it was just Nozomi playing tricks from above, she tried to ignore it while walking. The deeper she walked into this unknown place, the louder the voice was. _Uuuuuuuuuuu _Eli's walking began to take pace as the voice started getting louder. As she found herself closing her eyes as the darkness from behind and voice started to mix, her sanity was running down fast. Wanting to get out of this evil place, she started to run and soon met with the source of the voice.

_Uuuuuu Found it! _Shocked by what she saw, she heaved a big sigh of relief as her heart rate started to normalize. _It was just Umi... _Eli thought as she sees Umi holding a huge chest. Uncertain of its contents, her curiosity got the best of her, bluntly questioning Umi what's inside that chest.

"Oh, this? It was something that my father gave to me back when I was still 13 years old when It was his birthday, he told me to never open it until something happens to him..." Umi let out a sigh as she recalled her fathers death. Eli gave her a pat to the back and told her that everything will be fine. They soon head back to the others with the chest in their hands.

"Woah, so Umi was inside that deep hole all the time!?" Nico said shockingly.

"Yeah, I remembered placing it inside the storage room the day after my Father's birthday."

"Well, that huge thing would have just been a pain to clean in your room." Nico said bluntly. Maki shortly pushed her shoulder for being rude.

"Ow! What was that for!" Nico stared into Maki's eyes, igniting some spark between the two. Not wanting to see this internal fight to lead to conflict, Nozomi barged in to put out the flames.

"Now Now, do your lover's quarrel on your private time will you?" Nozomi teased.

"W-we're not having a lovers quarrel!" Nico and Maki soon looked away as they blushed. Now that the flames have been extinguished, everyone's eyes met with Umi's. Knowing what their stares meant, she nodded and slowly opened the chest. As she slowly opened it to check its content, her eyes were met with the light inside the damp chest.

With the flames of war still raging on outside the castle, the knights soon found themselves in need of some help. The commander sent one of the knights to head back to the castle and call for reinforcements. The knight soon finds himself backing out from combat and ran back to the castle.

He ran down to the underground barracks and soon came back with more knights, along with Snipers and some trap specialists. The Snipers began to shoot down the dark monsters, dropping their count. As more time has passed, they noticed that more dark figures started to gather while the war prolongs. With their resources and man force dropping down by the second. The ratio of deaths of knights and monsters were 10:1. It was a really gruesome fight that nobody would want to see themselves to get into.

"Hehe~ that's right, tear their guts out of their living flesh. It's only something you can enjoy once from every enemy, so you better get the best enjoyment out of it~" The voice from the back said as the screeches of a sharp object were heard. Soon, a big figure find its way out inside the waters. It was 20...no... 50 times bigger than the usual monster. Just by emerging into the waters, it wiped out at least 80 knights and 5 of its own allies.

"Ohoh~ that was such a beautiful scenery you just made, go on. Rampage to your heart's content young fellow~" the huge monster roared, reaching to where Umi, Nico, Maki, Nozomi and Eli was.

As Umi finds her eyes analyzing the contents of the chest, she finds four things. Two pistols, a pair of gloves and a piece of letter which was probably left by her Father. The pistols were quite unique if you could describe it. The left pistol has a pearl as its centerpiece, its main components were that of a revolver. It was coated with crimson that signified power and redemption.

The other pistol had the words "love" embedded on it, its main components were that of a magnum. It was coated with azure that probably meant no matter where she is, her father will always be with her. She feels the high powered magic that had been cast on both of them, enabling these weapons to shoot underwater, it seems that these guns do not consume bullets, but energy(mana) from the holder.

The gloves were silky and perfectly fitted into Umi's hands. The left glove was coated with black while the other was white, these resembled protection and fortitude. It's trademark were the two almost hidden middle sized spikes behind it which was be used for melee combat. As Umi picked up the last item in the chest which was the letter, she inhaled and exhaled before reading its content.

_To my Dearest Umi,_

_Since you have opened this letter, it must have mean that something has happened to me. I did my best to become the best Father you could have asked for, remember those times when you approached me when you had problems in life? Haha, It really brings me back, I'm sure that by now, you have grown into a fine woman. Someone who can decide for her own self, someone who realizes her own mistakes but never gives up because of it, but instead tries her best to improve on the field she think she's weak on. You've been my hope, my light, my savior, Umi. I'm sure that without you, I would have never experienced the happiness of being a Father. You are and will always be the greatest treasure to me, if you're planning to take vengeance for me if I was killed by someone, forgive them and make them your allies, for a great enemy in the past may become one of your greatest allies in the future. Do not give up, Umi. I'll always watch you no matter where you are._

_P.S The Manju you gave me tasted great! _

_Love, Dad._

Umi's tears started to flow nonstop as the letter reminded her of every single thing that she ever did with her Father, all the precious memories that was kept inside her heart. All represented into her emotions. The feeling of losing a loved one is painful, but it's even more painful if you have forgotten them. Remembering the last few words of her dad to _never give up_, she wiped her tears and walked towards her closet.

She pulled out a white semi -transparent skirt, one that covers her knees. It was designed to have sea wave-like patterns using shining pebbles that glow in the sea. It was something that made Nico even more jealous. Aside from her perfect proportions, she even has perfect clothes that will even make her even more beautiful and benevolent. Umi ignoring the negative aura that Nico's emitting, she pulled the hanger down from her closet holding a Shrug. It was a simple, light blue Shrug with spiral like patterns on its hem.

"Oh, a Shrug? I never expected that from you Umi." Eli exclaimed.

"Yeah, I don't know why but wearing a Shrug makes me feel calm... It wraps my body with warmth, something that the sea could never give." Umi replied,

Umi went to her changing room and spent as little time as possible. Within a few minutes, she exited and showed her "transformation" everyone.

"S-so? How does it look?" Umi said as embarrassment started to build up into her thoughts.

"It's..." everyone paused. "Perfect!" Nico shouted as she gave Umi a hug.

"W-wha!?" Umi started to blush as the hug of Nico tightens. Maki, who looks like she can't take the jealousy anymore pulled Nico back from Umi and started cuddling her.

"Aww~ was Maki-chan jealous?" Nico teased, earning herself a flustered Maki. "I-I'm not!" her cuddle tightened, slightly choking Nico.

"It's really cute Umi, why not wear something like this forever~" Nozomi teased the still blushing bluenette causing her to blush even more. Wanting more from her reactions, Nozomi pulled Umi's skirt. "This one needs to be of more shorter length though~" Umi soon found herself onto her bed chanting "So embarassing" for oh so many times.

The roar of the dark monster started to grow louder and louder as it rampages on the sea floor. Luckily, it accidentally stepped on one of the traps set earlier. Seeing this as one of the only open opportunities they will ever have, the commander ordered the knights to focus on the now trapped monster while the Snipers and trap specialists handle the smaller ones.

"Hehehe~ It's futile to struggle you know~" the voice in the back teased, provoking the commander and soldiers.

"We will fight for our homeland till death! We will never surrender!"the commander shouted.

Back in Umi's room, the roar finds itself playing in by it(Nico specifically), they soon took out their weapons, Maki took out a steel fan which matches the color of her hair. It had patterns resembling dragonic scales on its rim.

They found it in an antique shop which was reputable for it's wide range of selections. Back when Maki was finding for weapons, she originally planned using twin knives but this piece of treasure hit the jackpot.

It was given the name "Velvet Crimson", it was said to have been made by an alchemist 300 years ago for a princess he had loved in their time, however, it ended in tragedy due to the king discovering their later affairs. The passionate love that the alchemist had created this masterpiece and is still felt by its holder until today.

Nico grabs a polearm that was even taller than her. Its corners were forged with diamonds making it (if not indestructible) very hard to break, its onyx coating gives it a shiny luster. It was given the name "Raven's Volition" from an enigmatic man who one day decided to leave this piece of artifact and said to give it to "someone who'll choose its master". While Nico was wandering the stalls, the old woman gave it to her with the reason being "the weapon told me that you are its master."

Nozomi strikes a pose as she shows her weapons, a deck of tarots and a crystal...ball? As everyone stared into the crystal ball, all they saw was their own reflection.

_What..._everyone didn't know what to say.

"Was it really that shocking for me to wield such weapons?" Nozomi asked as she gave each of them a separate glance.

"W-well... Somewhat, just how do you plan to use these weapons on the field Nozomi?" Nico questioned with a frown.

"You'll see it later, Nico." Nozomi then smiled, somewhat giving some relief to her team mates.

Eli double checked her Elude Sigma in her sheath, it was too dangerous and blinding to pull it out inside a closed area. She sighed as she doesn't have the chance to show off her new weapon.

"Well then, are we all ready?" Umi asked.

"Yes~" Nozomi said slyly

"Ready whenever you are." Eli politely answered.

"Ready as long as Maki's coming!" Nico declared.

"W-what are you saying, Idiot! I-I'm ready..." Maki stuttered.

"All right, let's go." Umi proceeded forward and exited her room along with the rest.

The struggle was real as almost every knight had been wasted. Snipers were pretty much running out of supplies of ammo. Seeing as all hopes lost, they had almost forgotten the one thing that can turn the odds into their favor.

Seeing the shadow of the Sea princess, Umi. The remaining soldiers morale rose, preparing for another head on attack. Umi who's standing still aims at one of the dark monsters at a very far distance. Slowly taking aim with her left pistol. She slowly pulled the trigger, by the time the bullet was released out of the gun's barrel.

the bullet swirled around the currents, passing through it as it slowly reaches its target. These moments felt like minutes to them. With each twirl the bullet makes, it soon broke into three smaller bullets. Almost instantly, it reaches its target, causing three small holes to appear in the middle of its head. The shadow slowly disappeared, indicating its death.

_Headshot._

"All of you who are still in the condition to fight. Raise your weapons high! These enemies are just the beginning to what is to come! If we cannot protect our love ones from this small threat. What would become of our homeland, our citizens when the next waves come! We are not weak! It is the time for our counterattack! We are the Sonotopians! We shall never give up until we lose our last breath!" Umi shouted with pride and determination.

The warriors in the land soon rose and raised their weapons with pride. Their morale further rose as their leader, Umi swam to the front and landed on the ground, soon leading them to victory.

"Ufufu~ This is getting interesting... Let's see how much despair can you all handle~" The voice in the back snickered.

Waiting for their leaders to give them their order, every warrior and monster readied their weapons. Within the few seconds, the true war was declared.

_Everyone, Attack! _Umi and the voice said in unison.

The battle raged on as the knights fought with all their might. Later on, Snipers partake in close combat using daggers or swords. Multiple dark monsters tried to gang up on Umi who's been standing on the ground ever since. She reacted on the last second, sweeping each of them from their footing. She jumped on their heads and gave each of them a headshot from above. Umi then rushed into the enemy's frontline, assaulting them with barrages of bullets.

"Aww~ Umi's taking the spotlight, should we go and prove that we're also of use?" Nozomi said, Nico soon rushed forward shouting "Attack!" while Maki followed her from the back.

"Hmm, let's go and grab ourselves some action, Nozo-" Eli looked back to see Nozomi who seems to be concentrating on her tarot cards. She grabbed a card and revealed it as

_Strength_.

"I'll stay here and do some analyzing, you go and have fun Eli." Nozomi gave her a peck on the lips which caused Eli to blush.

"J-just you watch, I'll protect you." Eli murmured as she swam towards the enemy.

As Eli's figure soon disappeared from Nozomi's sight. She muttered, "I know Eli, I know you will."

As Nico swam to fight the monsters, she was soon surrounded by 4 of them.

"Wah! I'm surrounded!" Nico screamed for help, in a few seconds, the monsters soon disappeared.

"Uwah?" She looked at her back to see Maki, it seems that she saved Nico's life.

"Stop rushing towards your death Nico... I-I don't want to lose you afterall." Maki hid her face behind her fan to prevent Nico from seeing her blushing expressions.

"D'aw~ That's so sweet Maki, don't worry! We'll live through this and in the future, we'll get married!" as Nico shouted out her declaration, she hugged Maki causing causing her to hide her blushing face even more.

"Now now. Don't flirt in the middle of a war you silly couple." Eli said as she sliced the monster that was about to attack Nico from behind,with her sword still sheathed.

"Uwah, that was close. Thanks for the assist, Eli!" Nico gave Eli a bow showing her thanks.

"Just be careful next time, let's go!"

The three of them soon headed to a waves of monsters.

Maki gracefully sliced her enemies with her fan, her attack pattern looked like she was dancing, as she sliced another enemy. She pulls her fan back to its base. She jumped towards a pile of monsters, adjusted her center of gravity, releases her fan's deadly fangs yet again and spins as she lands on the pile of monsters, killing them all as a result.

Nico, wielding her huge polearm like an amateur that she truly is. She carelessly swings its front and back edges, surprisingly stabbing two monsters on their chest. She soon found herself charging towards enemies impaling all who stands in her way.

Eli stood there patiently, eyes closed. The dark monsters crept to her and tried to launch a surprise attack. They soon find themselves flying away and faded, only remembering the scabbard of Eli's sword as the last thing which killed them.

A huge horde of monsters were headed towards Eli's direction, seeing as there's only one way to wipe them all at once, she unsheathed her Elude Sigma and focused a big part of her energy to the blade. The blade's glow soon became blinding, indicating that it's on it's full power. She pulled the sword back and swung it with full force. A huge horizontal wave of light was generated from the swing, destroying every dark monster on its path. She sheathed back her sword and ran to another area along with the other two.

"Wow, no wonder you didn't pull your sword inside Umi's castle, that swing would have destroyed everything inside." Nico still amazed from what Eli just did.

"Yeah... It would have also blinded us since Umi's room was so blue and all." Eli sighed and looked at Maki.

"But still, I would have wanted Maki's choice of weapon if I was given the chance..." Eli added.

"W-Wha? Why would you want to use a fan Eli? It wouldn't really fit your style." Maki started to a Nico who has been staring at her the whole time.

"W-What are you staring for!?"

"I was just recalling how Maki's curves looked like when she was spinning so elegantly on mid-air." Nico said bluntly, causing Maki to blush once again.

"S-Stop imagining such things!" she stuttered embarrassingly.

They soon find themselves in an area with no monsters present, could it be a trap? Ready for what is to come, a voice in their heads were heard inside their heads.

_Look out from above! _

The three looked above and sees the huge dark monster falling down, attempting to crush them which failed due to the advance warning.

"I-Is that you, Nozomi?" Eli asked.

_Yes, it's me. I'm currently in a remote area focusing on reading the near future. I'll warn you guys if the monster or anything else does something life threatening. _

"All right. Nico, Maki, are you ready for a long fight?" Eli asked which Nico and Maki instantly nodded as reply.

Umi finds herself killing the seemingly endless amount of monsters in the frontlines. She took a deep breath and concentrated her energy in both of her guns. She released these guns and within a split second, it disappeared. Umi looked like she was controlling something, with her eyes shut and having a visible blue aura covering her. Soon, the whole battalion of enemies faded into thin air. A thousand of them "died" every second without any signs of what killed them. Only Umi knew what happened. She controlled the guns and shot her enemies at a super fast rate from the inside without them knowing that they've died.

Within a minute, no monsters were visible on her eyes.

"That's quite the interesting skill you've got there, Princess~ I can't wait to fight someone like you and slice their sweet flesh slowly, hearing their sweet screams~ Ah~ Such bliss~" the voice said in a wicked tone, chuckling soon after.

"So... Were you the one who commanded one of these sick creatures to try and kill me, but killed my father!?" Umi shouted from a distance.

"Ah~ You mean that old geezer you are so fond off? That was actually me~ " the voice replied. Umi's face soon looked she was staring in front of death.

"You... KILLED MY FATHER!?" Umi shouted as her rage surges in her heart.

"Why yes~ Ahaha, your face during his death was such bliss, it made me want more~" the faint sounds of a blade screeching was heard from the voice's direction. Umi soon found herself rushing towards the direction to where the voice came from.

The battle between Nico, Maki and Eli against the huge monster was like a battle of endurance. With their blows barely making any dents against such an armored monster. It was unfortunate since Eli use her Elude Sigma's wave when she has enough energy, which she clearly did not have at the moment.

Seeing how this fight looks like a one-sided battle. They were about to abandon all hope until they heard Nozomi's words.

_All of you, move away from that area immediately, I'm finally done with the preparations._

As soon as these words reached their mind, Nico, Maki and Eli retreated as fast as they can. The monster tried to follow them but found itself inside a barrier. Seeing how long it took for Nozomi to prepare such a big barrier, it was no easy task at all. Nozomi soon appeared beside the monster, she then placed her hand on the barrier and began chanting. as she finished her chant, the whole barrier along with the monster disappeared.

_You guys can come back now. _

The girls returned to the area only to see Nozomi in the scene.

"Woah, where did that huge tough monster go!" Nico exclaimed.

"Well~ I guess we could say he went to a better place." Nozomi grabbed Eli by the collar and whispered into her ear.

"Thanks for protecting me Eli." the blonde soon finds herself blushing.

"Now, let's go to where Umi is, we haven't seen her ever since she dived into the enemy's frontline." Nozomi said to the group.

"All right."

They soon head North to where Umi a moment, the water currents started to move faster, bringing a bad omen for what is to come.

* * *

**A/N: hmm hmm~ I wonder who owns that "voice" that keeps on showing up in this chapter(oh wait I already know who it is :U )**

**I'll be taking a rest in a few minutes since I'm still feeling sick, so tah tah~ leave any reviews or whatever you want. I'll read them later = w= *sparkles away***


	9. Blue Awaited Shores III

**A/N : The final part for Umi's arc~ I'm sorry if the fight disappointed you in one way or more ; w;**

**(Dash24zappshift): Nico doesn't need to sharpen her skills, she has Maki to be her savior(ho ho ho~) although Nico will get a tremendous po- woops, didn't mean to spoil that for you Au A **

**(Kajeno Otamegane): Plot twist: Umi killed Kotori's bird ! no, that'll suck(and tear jerking)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live!**

* * *

As Umi pushed through the heavy currents, the sea turned dimmer as she went deeper. This did not made her worry for what is to befall from her. Her thirst for vengeance grew larger and larger as the voice grew louder.

"WHERE ARE YOU!?" Umi shouted as her eyes were filled with bloodlust.

"I'm here~"

Umi headed to the north-west where voice came, she aimed at the endless waters in front of her with her left pistol. She pulled the trigger without any second thought and the bullet was soon met with _swoosh_ _._

"That almost hit me... that was dangerous you know~" the voice continued to giggle as Umi's rage consumed her even more. With a storm brewing in her heart, the currents grew even stronger. You can say that this may be the manifestation of Umi's rage.

"Ah... I'm bored. Fight me will you, you little scapegoat." provoking Umi even more, she pushed her speeds to the limits and soon met her father's perpetrator in front of her.

It's a girl. A girl who had those similar amethyst as Maki's. She had Beautiful Auburn shaded hair. Her looks was princess like, something that can even rival Maki's. She wears a black hoodie,covering some parts of her face. On her left hand holds a huge dark scythe that she considers a weapon to "enjoy people's lives.". A true sadist.

Her dark aura was overflowing throughout her body.

"Who...are you..." Umi muttered.

"Hehehe~ I'm Yuuki Anju, your father's killer. Now, would you like me to reunite you and your father~? I'm sure that he'll be happy to see his daughter~ Headless of course~" Anju politely introduced herself with an evil grin on her face.

"...I'll kill you..." Umi's rage can no longer be controlled. With her guns already prepared for battle, she pushed herself to the strong currents and tried to deal a preemptive strike behind Anju. Umi shot twice at high speeds while the currents carried her, attempting to confuse her foe, however, this did not faze Anju. In a split second, Anju swung her scythe through air, slicing the bullets with supersonic air waves with ease. She sat back on the blade of her scythe and teased Umi once again.

"Is that everything you've got? So boring~ I expected more from a high class _princess_."

_Rage _seethed inside her heart even more, bringing Umi even closer to insanity. Seeing how Anju was fighting her calmly made her even more angry.

_This...this woman killed my father!? She's just underestimating on what I can do! I'll show her... _Umi fired pure energy out of her right pistol. Causing the bullet to blow up mid way before it even landed on Anju.

"Now now~ Don't waste your energy with such futile efforts. Come now, let me end this quick." Anju now started to take on the offensive. She sliced the currents with one swing, exposing the hidden Umi. Ready to attack anytime, Anju swung her blade immediately, leaving little to no time for Umi to react.

_Oh shi- _her hands naturally moved by itself, using her pistols to parry the incoming attack. She pushed Anju away and used her gloves spikes. She jabbed forward and grazed Anju's face. Anju soon looked down below, emitting an even dark aura compared to before.

"You... HOW DARE YOU MAKE SUCH A MARK ON MY FACE!" Anju swings her scythe in a full 360 cycle repeatedly, making a huge hurricane underwater. The hurricane sucked in Umi and was unable to avoid such a fate. Anju, from below immediately rushes towards Umi with bloodlust and slices the area where the lucky Umi was able to dodge at the last second. Umi swam away from the hurricane and went to another area.

As she was swimming away from the hurricane, she saw her loyal troops, fallen. Without any time to mourn for their deaths, she took the remaining traps from a bag of a fallen trap specialist, swam even further and set the traps. She then waited for Anju to fall for her trap. A few seconds later, Anju, who started to grow horns from her forehead pierced the cloth of her hoodie which the horns took territory.

"WHERE ARE YOU, YOU UNKEMPT PRINCESS! COME HERE SO I CAN TEAR YOU LIMB BY LIMB!" Anju growled.

Waiting like a predator who's about to strike its prey, Umi held the trigger with her shaking hands. Anju took another step, with her weapon ready to slice anything that stands on her way.

One step forward, another step forward, Umi's heart started to beat faster as the adrenaline rushed into her body. One last step, Anju looked at the surroundings and saw a stray of Umi's hair from below. Grinning like it's her victory, she took a step forward, compressed all her energy into her scythe and by the moment she was about to swing her huge scythe that was about to annihilate a huge area within its range, Umi pulled the trigger.

A human sized cage soon appeared below Anju's feet. Unfortunately, Anju was able to react in time, avoiding her capture.

_Damn it. _Seeing her plans fail, she had no choice but to attack Anju head-on.

She took a deep breath, clearing her thoughts and compressed all her energy like what Anju did into both of her pistols and gloves, making them glow with excessive brightness.

"Hope you're prepared, princess! Die!" Anju shouted with all her might and swung her scythe with full force towards Umi's direction, A Dark Red wave soon finds its way coming towards Umi. The force placed on the swing was too strong for the ground to handle all at once, trenches were made nearby. The people of Sonoda Town were shaking as the effect reached them, experiencing a magnitude 4 earthquake.

As the wave was about to hit Umi, she pointed both her guns on Anju's direction with her index fingers prepared to pull the trigger. She took another deep breath, looked on the wave and sees it slowly moving towards her.

_Do not fear, my daughter. I will always be here to protect you. _Her father's voice reached her thoughts.

_Father...? _She replied in her mind.

_I'm here to guide you to your desired path. _A phantom... No, a spirit-like figure, with similar physical aspects of Umi's father showed behind her back and placed his hand above Umi's.

_Just look forward, and blast your way to your real path, the path that only you have decided. _The spirit said. Umi feeling the warmth of her father's hands subsided her remaining anger and cleaned her mind with unwanted thoughts. She pulled both triggers at the same time, igniting the barrels of both guns and let out two bullets, one that was blue, one that was red, swindling in unison. It slowly pierced through the wave, canceling its force to push even further. The bullet soon finds its way coming to Anju.

"N-No! I don't want to die!" Anju screamed as the bullets separated, she tried to guard herself with her scythe but it was too strong. The bullets broke the scythe and pierced both her shoulders. The scream of pain by Anju was heard from a distance.

"Hmm? Did you that scream Eli?" Nozomi asked.

"Yeah, let's check that way."

The four soon took the path where the scream was heard.

Anju fell to the ground, with tears falling on her face(tears underwater, yea I know.) with agony on her face as she can still feel the pain on her shoulders. Umi walked her way to Anju slowly and looked at her.

"Hah... I must really look pitiful in this state... Please kill me, Princess Umi." Anju pleaded.

"..." Umi sighed and carried Anju to her back.

"W-Wha, hey! What are you doing! Ow!" Anju tried to resist but the pain from her shoulders prevented her from doing it.

"I'm saving you, that's what I'm doing." Umi said which made Anju's eyes spark.

"...I tried to kill you a while ago... And now you're showing me kindness...?" Anju's eyes watered as she felt the guilt inside her once dark heart.

"...It doesn't matter, as long as we're alright, that's what matters in the end right?" Umi looked at Anju behind and gave her a genuine smile which made Anju cry not from pain, but from happiness.

_This is what you wanted, right... Father? _She thought to herself and smiled as she carried Anju on her back, leaving the broken scythe unwanted and forgotten.

As Umi walked forward to return to her homeland, she was soon spotted by her friends.

"Wee woo wee woo~ Umi x The girl she's carrying on her back on the wayyyy~" Nozomi teased which flustered both Umi and Anju.

"W-we're not like that!" Umi exclaimed, her face was soon caressed by the tending fingers of Anju's, although Anju still felt the pain from her shoulders, she didn't mind and it somewhat got numb along the way.

"Well~ I don't mind it at all~" Anju teased in a seductive voice. Umi's face turned even redder than before.

_If this g-gets even more out of hand, my hair will soon turn as red as Maki's! _Umi thought to herself as her cheeks were spreading its redness all over her face.

"Ahah~ I'm just kidding, Umi-san. I know that I'm not worthy for your wonderful heart." Anju released Umi's face from her clutches. Umi felt relief and sadness at the same time.

"Wait a minute... That voice... Is she that person who was behind the enemies the whole time!?" For the first time, Nico made a smart realization.

"Woah, you're right." Eli said, somewhat surprised although the others were just as surprised, Umi just giggled from their reaction.

"Don't worry, she doesn't mean harm now, she's one of us and she'll be coming with us for our journey." Umi said, smiling.

"Hmm~ if that's what Umi-san says, I can't say no to the person who saved my life afterall." She gave Umi a hug from behind, still being carried. Umi's face soon returned back to its reddish state as she felt the soft things that's hitting behind her back, making her mind imagine of infinite things on what _was _actually hitting her back.

"My my, I guess even the innocent Umi can think of perverted things when she feels _things _that can make her feel good~." Nozomi said with a huge grin.

"S-Shut up, Nozomi!" Umi soon find herself chasing Nozomi while carrying Anju who's enjoying the heartwarming events she had never experienced in her whole life.

They soon went back to Sonotopia and went back to the castle. Umi told them to relax on the castle's lounge while she had somebody _important _to attend to. She went to the royal chambers and meets with her mother.

"Mom... I'll be leaving with my friends and save the world." She said.

"Are you insane? What can a kid like you do to save the world?" Umi's mother said rudely.

Umi was never really close with her mother, all they ever did was fight with each other ever since she was 13 years old. When her father died, her mother locked herself up in the Royal chambers, mourning for her dead husband ever since.

Umi tightly gripped her hands feeling the sting of her mother's words. This is the only chance that she can get her mother's approval, it's the only chance she will ever have in her whole life.

"Father's spirit came to me, he told me that he'll protect me no matter which path I'll take. He'll be with me, to protect me. Yes, call me selfish for choosing this path, but please... I want to take this path, I want to overcome this challenge and I'm not alone, I have friends who are there for me and I'm sure that we can overcome any challenge we will face." Umi declared. In a few seconds that felt like forever for Umi, her mother stood from her couch and gave her a hug. For the first time in a long time, she felt her mother's love for the first time.

"Okay... Just don't get into too much trouble, all right?" she said as she kissed Umi on the cheeks, Umi's tears fell down from her cheeks, unable to hold the happiness she is feeling right now.

Umi soon went back to lounge and met with her friends, fairly getting along with Anju.

"Let's go, everybody?" Umi said with a bright smile on her face. Everyone nodded and soon headed back to the , no casualties were met in the town.

_You're really there to protect us, huh Father?_

* * *

**A/N: Fell asleep on the Job(when I mean job, I meant playing LLSIF) 4m user free loveca's + Maki SR event. Bushiroad you sure know how to make people engage in wars.**

**P.S : Can someone teach me how to remix songs?**

***sparkles away***


	10. Evening Colored Past

**A/N: I'm so sorry for this late update, I was getting constant writer's block and only had few hours of sleep these past few days ; w; **

**I wonder how long will this series of mine last, I've been thinking of ending it with around 20+ chapters but eh, Idk if I could extend it that long, maybe if I write lots of NicoMaki's inside, this'll surely end with 20+ chapters.**

** (Dash24zappshift): continue to guess, young one~(i'm not that old ermerged, I'm still 17... so not old!) **

**(Guest): Don't worry, this chapter provides you a good dose(probably 300 mL) of NicoMaki.**

**(KidoTsubomi22): This chapter will explain who I'll be shipping Umi with.**

**(tjcooper666): KotoUmi's cute~ but i'm sure that some agree that AnjUmi also cute(have another fanfic for them which I'm currently making)**

**I've been stuck listening to Beat in Angel too, was planning to do 120 plays in LLSIF for it but it was too late ; ~; I should just cry in the corner.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live!**

* * *

The group soon entered inside a forest without the slightest hint of where to actually start their adventure. As Nico's energy dropped to a big zero, they decided to take a rest near the lake. Although it was still during the middle of the day, they set up 3 tents. Eli and Nozomi took the left, Maki and Nico took the middle and Umi and Anju took the right.

"Hey~ come on now Elicchi, why not do it now~?" Nozomi smiled and held Eli's hands, "I know you want to~" Eli blushed.

"W-why now!?" Eli exclaimed, her hands were shaking which Nozomi felt instantly.

"Come on Elicchi~" Nozomi gently pulled Eli's hands closer to the destination that she wants the blonde's hands to be on, Nozomi can feel the shaking even more violent than it was before, she released one of Eli's hands and caressed Eli's face with the free arm.

"Trust me on this, Elicchi, or no kisses for you~" Eli's mind suddenly gushed out her imaginations of being dominated by Nozomi. Yesterday felt so long that it felt like it's been an eternity ever since Nozomi last gave her a batch of warm kisses.

"O-okay..." Eli's hands were soon guided by Nozomi's towards its destination...

_Plop_ Eli's hands soon touched the crystal ball. After a few moments, the crystal ball soon glowed with an blurry image and within a few seconds disappeared into nothing. Eli let out a big sigh after that.

Eli clamped both her hands, "that was really scary... You're so strong Nozomi, I thought that thing would blow up or suck me in and here you were bringing that ever since we've entered this realm." Nozomi kissed Eli on the lips, forcing the blonde to release her grip, Nozomi then sat on Eli's lap and wrapped her with both of her arms.

Nozomi whispered into Eli's ear, "You know that I won't allow anything to hurt my beloved." another attack to Eli's heart landed another critical hit to her heart, not knowing what to do next, Eli, who just lost the will to resist pulled Nozomi and whispered,

"The only thing that will hurt me is me being separated with you." silence soon passed by, creating an awkward atmosphere.

_W-why did I say something as embarrassing as t-t-that!? _Eli's face turned redder and soon noticed Nozomi's eyes gazing into hers with blushes visible on her cheeks.

"Eli... I never knew that you were such a poet." Nozomi pecked Eli's lips, caressed her face and stroke the blonde's hair, "I won't leave you Eli, I love you too much to do such a thing." Eli gave her a smile and rested their heads with each other.

"I love you too, Nozomi." they soon fell into a slumber, thinking about their partner's in the dream world.

Meanwhile in the second tent, Maki and Nico, both having a flushed expression overheard Eli and Nozomi's confessions due to their eavesdropping. Maki sat on the mats and took a pillow and hid her face by pushing her face into it while Nico just sat on the mats while thinking of what they heard just now.

"Say... Maki." Nico said.

Still covering her face with the pillow Maki replied, "M-Mmhtm!?" Nico sighed, obviously not knowing what Maki just said, she put on her mischievous smile and pushed her face on the other side of the pillow.

"N-Nnmmnmhm!?(W-What are you doing!?)"

"Mhmnnmnmn!(Being together with you, of course!")" Even though Maki didn't understand what Nico just said, her cheeks started to heat up even more. Thinking that it was just that the pillow was starting to get hot which was her excuse for having such flushed cheeks, she pulled her face away from the pillow which Nico followed.

"S-So? What do you want?" Maki asked while twirling her hair and avoiding eye contact.

Nico's eyes started to get teary which Maki instantly took notice of. Maki sighed and crept closer to Nico's side and hugged her.

"You know... I was really scared back then, I thought that you would have died and left me..." Maki hugged tightly, "...don't be so reckless, Nico-chan. You're just making me even more worried, you know?" she then patted Nico's head, "So please, don't leave without me." Nico's tears started to dry up and hugged Maki back.

"Of course I won't, Maki-chan's the most precious person in my life after all, I won't be complete without you." Nico pushed Maki down and started at her amethyst eyes, "I see something wet on your eyes, Maki. Are you crying?"

"I-Idiot, I'm no-" Maki's words were interrupted as Nico pushed her lips to Maki's, the warmth that they're feeling right now was something that they needed. The time they had wasted was all in vain as the time now was their time forever. As Nico pulled back her lips for breath, Maki took the chance and pulled Nico back into kissing.

"M-Ma-mmm-w-wai-mmm!" Maki was just too into Nico's kisses that she didn't even feel like breathing, all she wanted was Nico. "M-Maaaaak-mmm!" after another minute of kissing, Maki finally pulled back but her lust still remained. Both of them panted, gasping for air.

As Nico panted, "G-geez... This feisty princess sure has such an appetite for Nico Nii's~ love." before pulling Maki into another kiss she said, "I wouldn't mind spoiling such a princess though." The two had another round of kissing, pulling their heart strings even closer together.

Meanwhile in the third tent, Anju was just there combing Umi on a fetal position on her lap. She enjoyed every strand she could comb. Umi, who's been relaxed on Anju's lap ever since had been daydreaming ever since she lied down on Anju's lap but was pulled back into reality as Anju asked her something.

"I wonder... Does Umi-san have anyone of interest?" pulling an underhanded question like that, the unprepared Umi's cheeks started to flush.

"N-No I do not...! W-well... Not yet..." her cheeks turned redder after adding the other reply silently.

Still combing Umi's hair, Anju asked, "Hmm... Well, what kind of person do you think you would fall in love with then, Umi-san?"

"W-well... That would b-" her words were interrupted as she saw a girl with a friend who were running away in panic while a wild boar chased both of them outside.

_Yea.. It would be that gi- WAIT A WILD BOAR IS CHASING THEM! _Umi stood up and grabbed both of her pistols from the sides and ran west to catch up with the wild boar.

Anju sat there in silence with a smile in her face, "I guess you've found your answer, Umi-san."

As Umi ran with all her might, she finally sees the shadow of the wild boar which was still on a raging stampede.

"Helppppp!" a girl shouted as they were cornered by the boar.

"S-Stop trying to ride on top of me, Honoka-chan~"

Without a moment to spare, Umi ran as fast as she could, as soon as she spotted the boar, she jumped on it and shot it on the head instantly killing it.

"Are you girls all right?" Umi asked as she climbed down the boar.

The ginger haired girl gave Umi a hug, "Thank you! If it weren't for you, we would've been goners by now!" the girl pulled her friend and forced both Umi and the girl to shake hands, "You too Kotori-chan! Say thanks!"

"T-Thank you very much~" the girl bowed as gratitude, for some reason, Umi's cheeks turned red.

"Ah, I almost forgot. I'm Sonoda Umi, Nice to meet you."

She smiled at Umi then said, "My Name is Minami Kotori, Nice to meet you~" .

Minami Kotori, her eyes were amber which shined the same way as Umi's. She was wearing a frilly Mantis shaded dress with a small bell on the side of it. The hem was white and had an orb on which covers a part of her chest. She was holding a scepter on her left hand. It's tip was designed to look like a heart, it seems that there was magic casted inside the scepter. Her ash gray hair swayed on the air as she pulled back from her bow.

_She's so cute... _Umi thought as she stared at Kotori.

"Hello! I am Kousaka Honoka! Nice to meet you oh prince in shining armor!" Honoka proceeded on hugging Umi again a few moments later.

Ignoring the Honoka on her side, Umi asked, "So... What were you guys doing to make this boar chase you all the way here?" Kotori placed her scepter below her chin as she tries to recall what she and Honoka were doing.

"Hmmm~ Ah... We were actually looking for something to eat since our institute kicked us out... It's been three days ever since we've had eaten anything. Honoka here tried to kill the boar but failed and here we are meeting like it was fate, I guess~" Kotori sheepishly grinned.

As Umi looked behind, she sees the boar who's life was taken in an instant by her, it does have the size to fill in 8 people, her only problem is how to bring it back to their camp.

"Well, we can go back where me and my friends were staying. If you want, we can cook the boar there since we have ourselves a _professional _chef in our hands, the only problem is bringing this big boar back to our camp..." Umi crossed her arms and tries to think of a way, Kotori waved her scepter around trying to catch her attention.

Giving a confused look, Umi asked, "Hmm? What is it Kotori?"

"I can carry the boar with my magic! Eh erm... What was that again..." Kotori looked trouble as she tried to remember which spell should she use, "Ah! I remember." she waved her scepter multiple times and chanted her spell then tapped the boar with the scepter. In an instant, the boar started to float on the air.

"Oh, never thought of it that way." Umi soon started to walk north.

"Eh? Where are you going, Umi-san?" Honoka asked as she followed Umi.

"Hmm? To the camp of course."

"Oh, let's go!" Honoka fist pumped on air, "Don't just stand there Kotori-chan! Let's go!"

"Ah! All right." Kotori soon rushed to Umi's side and whispered, "I'm sorry if Honoka-chan's too energetic. She's been like that ever since we were kids."

Umi gave her a smile, "It's all right. Also, I would like to know more about you guys."

"Eh? About me?" Kotori's face showed a shocked expression.

Honoka raised her arm just like a kid waiting for her teacher to call her, "Oooo, Me first!"

"Yup, I'd love to hear about your lives." Umi smiled.

_Although I'd prefer listening to Kotori-san's life more. _

"All right Honoka-san, you can go first." Umi said.

"Mhm! Let's see~ It all started with me and Kotori back when we were kids..." Honoka looked up began to reminiscence the past.

It all started in a small town where life was simple. People lived their normal lives and everything was just in harmonic peace. Honoka being the adventurous girl that she is tried to find the most energy consuming type of fun. However, she felt that something was missing.

_If only I have someone to share this fun with... _Honoka lied down on the pasture on a hill where she was watching beautiful sunset. Having no one to share the scenery with, she soon headed back down to call it a day. As she walked down, she saw this little girl plucking off flowers in a flower garden. At a distance, the girl had Amaryllis, Freesia's, Gardenia's and many more. Honoka soon rushed towards the girl.

"Hiii! What are you doing?" Honoka asked, surprising the girl.

"Ah, picking up some flowers for my mother~" the girl smiled on Honoka. For some reason, Honoka felt that she could be close with this girl.

"Ooh~ Why is that?" Honoka asked.

"It's her birthday tomorrow and I wanted to give her a _biiiiiiiiig_ flower bouquet~" Kotori said while imagining a human sized flower bouquet(really?). Honoka who's amazed by Kotori's actions and resolve began to pull flowers.

"H-Hey, what are you doing?" the little Kotori asked.

"Helping you of course! Now let's go and make a present your mom will never forget!" Honoka said as she continued to pluck out flowers.

Kotori's eyes widened and smiled, "Okay!"

They spent the whole afternoon plucking flowers and ended with a huge bouquet which Kotori's mother cherished. Ever since then, they've become the best of friends.

Returning from her flashback, Honoka said, "And that's how me and Kotori-chan here met~"

Little did she realized that Umi and Kotori were soon far from her sight. After a few seconds of processing in her mind what just happened, she shouted,"Hey, Wait up!"

* * *

**A/N: I've been getting too tired these days and I need someone to talk to, I'm getting too lonely in this long weekend q.q I'll try to upload the next chapter as soon as I'm done with it, but really. Having convos with other characters is turning into a trend in the LL! Fanfic section, darn it Tri.**

**Nico&Maki: H-Hey!**

**Kuu: Yush? o 3o**

**Nico: Stop writing about me and Maki! that's invasion of privacy!**

**Kuu: fufufu, I know you've been reading it the whole time, Nico-chan.**

**Maki: *stares at Nico***

**Nico: D-don't stare at me! I don't need your fanfic! I have Maki! *jumps and pounces Maki***

**Maki: H-Hey! Don't get too full of yourself Idiot!**

**Nico: Why not~ I'm sure you love getting pounced by the one and only Nico Nii~**

**Kuu: *grabs a camera and records***

**Maki: Stop filming! It's embarrassing!**

**Kuu: Yeah Yeah, like I care.**

**Nico: Can you give me a copy or two, Kuu?**

**Kuu: yeah sure why not.**

**Nico: *pounds Maki***

**Maki: Ahh! Don't!**


	11. Sweet Moonlight Gaze

**A/N: Hello everybody once again this is Ku-**

**Maki: Shut up and get on with the story already.**

**Kuu: erm... but this is the part of the A/N where I usually reply to the reviewers.**

**Maki: *crosses arms* Hmph, do what you want.**

**Kuu: (Eheheh~ I guess It's that time of the month again for Maki.)**

**(lianacim14): Haha~ yeah, sorry about that ; w; I originally planned this with KotoUmi but fret not! I made an AnjuUmi(AnjUmi) in my other fanfic, do check it out~**

**(equastar): yeap~ this will be a 2 person relationship but you know~ things might happen that will spice things up.**

**(KidoTsubomi22): That's alright, Maki is here to cure you all back to health!**

**Maki: W-Wha!?**

**Kuu: You did say that I can do what I want, now say it~**

**Maki: M-Mou... *pulls out syringes and does a pose* I'll cure you with my medicine of love! Nishikino Maki!**

**Kuu: *claps* that was perfect~**

**Maki: *pouts***

**(Kurama16): NicoMaki's a drug that can soon lead to your overdose, be prepared!**

**(Guest): I always did want to see an Aggressive Maki, fits her character design and especially when they released her in her panther costume, rawr.**

**(Kajeno Otomegane): It's all right, everybody supports their own ships and I know I am(NicoMaki *nosebleed*)**

**(Unknown1314): AnjUmi does look more mature compared to KotoUmi, I guess it's just a matter of preference.**

**(Dash24zappshift): *takes money and spends it to fund NicoMaki program* **

**Nico: Oh, we have a program!?**

**Kuu: yep.**

**Nico: better ask for more funds then, I want more of those Maki alone time.**

**Maki: D-don't say that in public! *hits Nico on the head***

**Nico: Ow!**

**Kuu: now now, you wouldn't want Nozomi to _punish _both of you now would ?**

**Nico&Maki: ... *runs away while holding hands***

**Kuu: that's so cute.**

**Nozomi: Kuu doesn't own love live~**

**Kuu: oh thanks Nozomi, almost forgot about that.**

**Nozomi: *smiles and prepares the groping stance of death***

**Kuu: eeep. **

* * *

_Hmm... about myself huh? _Kotori soon got herself into a flashback state as she tries to recall her past apart from the event that Honoka was talking about a while ago. All she ever recalled was her being on pedestal by her whole hometown due to her happy go lucky nature. She enjoyed spending time with nature, she often spent time in forest and such. Many guys had tried to court for her hand in marriage ever since she turned 13 which had left quite the scar in her heart that made it difficult for her to find love in all things except nature.

It was until then that Honoka introduced her to the world of magic. Within three years, she had learn so much from the people she had met and had risen through the ranks in an alarming pace which brought for idolization, popularity, envy and hatred towards her. All she ever wanted was to have fun like a normal girl would with her new found hobby albeit fate pulled her achievements down to the ground. She was accused of treachery during the 8th expedition for the lost Jade sphere which she and Honoka had volunteered to join. During that expedition, numerous rogue wizards launched a preemptive strike which led the death of numerous of the institute's finest magicians, only 5 survived, the two being Kotori and Honoka.

Seeing this as a chance for her rivals to sever her connection with the institute, a group of them filed a case against her and bribed the court with a huge sum of loveca. She was trialed for 2 days, false witnesses were brought to court to talk about false information.

One of the false witnesses was no other than Shinomiya Akiru, she was one of Kotori's acquaintances back when she was still in her first year in the institute. Kotori recalled one of one of Akiru's words during one of their conversations back when they were still first years "If you speak kind words to everyone, you're bound to be deceived."

_I guess you've been waiting for this moment to come, huh... Akiru... _The pain of being deceived stung Kotori's fragile heart. By the time the jury asked Akiru to come up and talk about her side of the story, Kotori stood up and said, "Why are you doing this, Akiru!?" no response was given.

"I saw Minami-san talking with a shady man during 11pm on one of the forked paths in my street 3 days before the expedition, they looked like they were talking something fishy. I'm sure it was one of the rogue wizards that attacked us, I'm sure of it! It's all Minami-san's fault!" Akiru shouted with a slight mixture of guilt and happiness in her face.

Kotori was perturbed by Akiru's words as she tried to recall about the guy Akiru was talking about. It was one of the guys who had tried to ask for her hand in marriage who gave her his words of encouragement before her department. She can't help but just feel tense for what is to come. As soon as Akiru walked back to her seat, she whispered on Kotori's ears, "I'm sorry." as she walked past her. It was at that point that Kotori thought to herself that she would never find herself to trust anyone else but Honoka and her family.

After her trial, the jury declares that she's guilty for treachery and genocide. Her connections with the institution was severed and was banished from her own hometown. She thought that she'll be alone forever but Honoka followed her from her department.

"Kotori-chan, wait!" the ginger ran as fast as she could to catch up with the ash haired girl.

With the emotional and spiritual scars brutally inflicted to the girl, she was only able to respond with a "huh". During the trial, Honoka was left waiting outside the courthouse in hope to see Kotori again. Rumors were spreading faster than a pandemic about Kotori being the number one enemy of the magical institutes.

Without thinking twice, Honoka rushed past Kotori and slapped her, the pain of her friend's slap was even more painful than a bite of a paraponera clavata. Tears quickly shed on her pale face as she placed her palm on the inflicted cheek ; however, as she looked on her friend's expression, all she saw was a very rare serious strong willed side she had never come across who's owned by someone she had always been with, someone who was of the same happy go lucky nature that she had.

Honoka firmly gripped on Kotori's shoulder, "Snap out of it, Kotori! Don't think that this is the end of your life! Sure you may have been kicked out of the institution, but that does not mean you should give up! I'm sure that we can work this out." she declared.

Kotori looked down in disbelief, "I don't know what to do Honoka-chan..." tears dripped from her cheeks, "I really don't know... They took my staff... They took my family... They took my everything..." she tried stop the wipe her never-ending tears falling down from her eyes.

"But!" Honoka's eyes started to form small spherical tears, "But... You are still alive, there's still an endless road of possibilities that you can take... I'm... I'm here with you, Kotori-chan..." an intemperate stream of tears found its way flowing out of Honoka's eyes, "Even if the world does not accept you, I will and nothing's ever going to change that..." Honoka soon found her face overlapping Kotori's shoulder.

_Honoka-chan... Thank you... _Kotori instinctively hugged the crying Honoka and comforted her. After their bitter weeps and cries, Honoka gave Kotori a smile which was reflected back to her. They soon got back to their feet and walked forward to the road, with their heads held high, in the journey of endless possibilities.

"That covers my life, I guess~" Kotori meekly said as she sees a crying Umi on her side.

Thinking that it's her fault that made the bluenette cry, "What's wrong, Umi-chan?" she asked as an attempt to know what's the problem.

Umi's tears just didn't stop, "I... I'm sorry... It's just that..." she sniffed, "Your life was just so tear jerking that I can't help but..." Umi soon found herself unable to stop crying.

"Ah..." Kotori tried to think of something to cheer Umi up, "Hmm~ It's all right, Umi-chan. I'm fine right now" she patted Umi's back, "so, can you please stop crying?" she said with a smile.

"All right..." Umi said as she wiped the tears off her eyes, "So... Are you and Honoka... You know... More than friends?" she asked embarrassingly.

"Ueh?" Kotori shocked by the sudden question, "Uhm... Well, at most we're just best friends." the answer that Kotori gave made Umi jump for joy.

_YESSSSSSSSS! _Umi soon found herself in an embarrassing fist pumping stance as Kotori was staring at her with a clueless expression.

"Uhm... That was..." Umi pulled her arms away as her cheeks burned with a scarlet shade, "T-that was nothing, ignore what I just did..." she muttered.

"Hmm?" Kotori hummed as she had yet to find the answer from Umi's actions.

A few seconds later, a rushing Honoka was a few meters away from them,

"Wait up, guys!" she shouted but then soon found herself hitting her face hard to a tree.

Kotori rushed towards the fallen Honoka, "Honoka-chan! Are you all right!?" she swiftly grabbed her specter from her rear pocket and chanted a spell, Honoka's body was soon covered with a green mist.

"What's that thing covering Honoka?" Umi asked curiously. The face of Honoka was still visible, it looked like a casket but it certainly wasn't.

"It's a healing cage, it's a spell that a friend... Well, used to be a friend... taught me to ensure nothing harmful will get inside the injuries while the cage generates healing pulses to accelerate the recovery." Kotori explained as she sheathed her wand back to her pocket.

In amazement, Umi walked closer to Honoka's unconscious body, "so... Even if I punch this thing hard, she won't feel a thing?" Kotori nodded.

"Hmm... I see..." Umi soon walked back towards Kotori's side. Within a few moments a few moments after Umi's withdrawal, Honoka regained consciousness and jumped her way out of the misty cage which soon dissipated into nothingness.

Shocked by what happened, Umi looked at Kotori with shock, "Eh? I thought that It won't break?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you." Kotori gave Umi a smile, "only the person inside can break out of the cage, the cage's security barrier will instantly vanish once the one inside recovers consciousness." she further explained.

"Oh... Seems interesting." intrigued by this, the thought of asking Honoka and Kotori to join her party came into her mind.

_Hmm... I should have the consent of everyone before asking though..._

They soon went back to the road and hasted back to the camp as the sunset had begun to fall.

The sun was no longer visible and energized Nico had set up a campfire in preparation for cooking. With Umi still missing, the elder ones waited outside to keep an eye out for the once again "missing" Umi.

"Where could have Umi went to..." Eli said as her eyebrows started to crease.

"She's almost here, you don't have to be so worried, Eli. It's like you're her mother or something." Nozomi said while holding a tarot cards.

"D-don't put it like that..." Eli averted her sight, "... That'll make you the father you know..." she added embarrassingly.

"Hmm? Did you say something Eli?" Nozomi asked.

"I-It was nothing!" Eli rushed back to the tent to hide her embarrassment.

Although still fazed by Eli's speed, she decided to ignore what just happened and decided to scout around the nearby surroundings. After a few minutes of scouting, Nozomi sees three silhouette approaching, one of them looking like Umi's. Certain that it really was Umi at the center, she headed back to the camp in advance to tell the others.

"Umi's back and with two other guests." she said.

"Oh, more stomachs to fill huh." Nico said sullenly as she bit her thumb.

Giggling, Nozomi patted Nico's head, "don't worry, they brought something _grand_, so better keep those knives of yours sharp, Nicocchi." she grinned.

"All right." Nico said with a deadpan expression while sighing in her head.

After a few more minutes, Umi emerged from the shadows.

"I'm back." she said.

"Where'd you go, Umi?" Nico asked blatantly.

"Ah... There was this huge boar who were chasing th-" as Umi was about to finish, Nico's shout interrupted her.

"S-so, did you guys bring the boar over here?" Nico asked.

"Yeah, we did. Can you prepare a bonfire instead?" Umi asked nicely.

"Sure, good thing I picked up lots of extra wood along the way."

"I'll help you!" Honoka shouted as she jumps out of the shadows.

"Uegh!? Who are you !?" Nico asked.

Carrying a bunch of wood Honoka said, "Hmm? I'm Kousaka Honoka! Nice to meet you!"

Nico offered her hand, "Ah... Nice to meet yo-" as Honoka tried to shake her hand, she immediately pulled back and shouted, "Wait a minute! Who _are_ you!?"

"I told you! I'm _Kousaka Honoka_!" Honoka exclaimed, this time emphasizing her name.

Clearly not getting it, Nico asked for the third time, "But really, wh-"

"Stop!" Umi shouted, "This girl is Kousaka Honoka, she's a friend of mine who I saved earlier, the girl who still hiding is Minami Kotori, she's also a dear friend of mine who was with Honoka here while they were being chased by a giant boar." she explained which cleared up the misunderstanding. Kotori soon emerged from the shadows.

"Ehehehe~ Hi~" Kotori waved while sheepishly smiling.

"Hi, I'm Yazawa Nico~ Nico Nico Nii~" Nico replied as she did her Nico Nico Nii pose.

"Uwah, so cute~ I wanna try too~ uhm... " she readied her fingers and attempted to do what Nico just did, "erm.. Koto Koto Ko~ Uwah, so embarrassing!" she covered her face as her cheeks revealed blushes.

_So cute... _Umi smiled as she stared at Kotori in an embarrassed state. Honoka, along with Nico soon finished making a bonfire that was big enough for the boar. Nico soon sliced the boar's content and cooked it near the bonfire, a few hours later the meat was ready. It was evenly divided to each individual. As they took the first bite, their eyes were filled with delight.

"Delicious!" Honoka said as she dig in for another bite.

"Did you put any special sauce in it, Nicocchi?" Nozomi asked as she examines one of the slices.

"Hmhm~ I'm glad you noticed, it's a special sauce that I had prepared beforehand if we were to ever have such a feast like this~" Nico said as she pumped her chest high(not like she has one, oh well.)

Nozomi smiled in amusement, "Well, I guess I'll be giving this sauce an A+." she took in another bite.

As the others continued to eat, Umi realized that something was missing, "Hey Nico, where's Maki?"

As Nico was about to take in another bite, "Ah..." she placed her chopsticks below her chin, "Hmm, oh yea. She told me that she wanted spend some time alone two hours ago, I'll go pick her up." Nico placed her plate down and head deep inside the forest.

Maki, who's amethyst eyes reflected against the moonlight rays glinted as a tear formed on her left eye. A tear that held no regret. A tear that held no sadness. A tear that she had held for so long. As she continued to look at the beautiful moon from afar, she was reminded by the raven haired girl in her mind. The thoughts of being with her was something she had always wished for in her entire life, _Being stuck in that caged castle was worth it if this was my reward, especially if it's with her... _She thought.

Given her natural born talent that she had refined these past few years, nobody has ever heard her sing no matter how hard she had reverberated her vocal cords. In another attempt of hers to find someone who's willing to listen to her song, she began singing.

_I'm watching you... I'm not watching you..._

_My heart is crying out as my memories are torn apart_

_By a fate that won't let us be together_

_I'm watching you... I'm not watching you..._

_Both of those options are me_

_I'll give you a farewell kiss before leaving for a land of sorrow_

_LOVELESS WORLD_

Seeing how futile it was, her voice's volume lowered as she had sung the second stanza. She sighed as she finished her song and turned away to go back to their group. However, what she saw was the raven haired girl she had been together with in this whole journey.

"T-those lyrics we-" before Maki could finish her words, Nico gave her a hug.

"I know you won't leave me... Maki-chan..." Nico muttered.

"Nico-chan..." Maki said with a sense of guilt.

Nico sniffed, "I won't let you go, Maki-chan... You won't get away from me. You are mine alone and nothing, even fate can tear us apart."

"Ni-" Nico disrupted Maki again with a passionate kiss, she sent her emotions through Maki's as she slurred, "I love you, Maki-chan!" not wanting to let go of Nico, Maki pulled Nico and gave her a deep kiss. Nico moaned as she felt Maki inside her tongue.

Due to nature being wicked with its logic, they soon pulled out to take a grasp for air.

"Ha... ah... Nico-chan..." Maki looked at Nico's lower part, "You're..."

Embarrassed, Nico covered her skirt with her hands, "D-don't look! Everyone's waiting for you, you know. Let's go and eat dinner." Nico stood up, wiped her lap from dirt and offered her right hand to Maki.

"I'd rather have you as dinner though..." Maki teased causing Nico to blush.

"N-Not now! B-besides... That can wait..." Nico said as her tummy rumbled emitting a noise.

"... Pft." unable to control her laugh, Maki bursted into a maniacal laugh.

"H-Hey! How rude!" Nico pouted.

After a few minutes of laughing, Maki finally calmed down and returned to her normal state.

"Are you done? Let's go." Nico said as she offered her hand again and averted her eyes, cheeks still covered with blush.

Maki wiped her tears, "Yeah, let's go." she pulled herself with Nico's hand and began to walk back to their camp together with Nico.

* * *

**A/N: I can't believe I survived Nozomi's attack, I would've been dead.**

**Eli: By the way, when will me and Nozomi be having our fun?**

**Kuu: oh that'll be soon, reaaaal soon.**

**Nozomi: I'm pretty sure Eli will be on bottom though.**

**Eli: No, you'll be on bottom.**

**Nozomi: That'll be no fun Eli~ I'm sure that you'll fail on being on top.**

**Eli: G-geez, fine.**

**Kuu: leave some suggestions for these lovely couples! Oh and I was supposed to write Umi groping Kotori when they first met but that'll be a bit too much for **

**the innocent Kotori.**

**Umi: H-Hey! (and I was about to do it too...)**

**Kotori: Hmm? What's a grope?**

**Kuu: erm.. nothing Kotori, you'll know it when you're older.**

**Kotori: Uegh? **


	12. Crimson Colored Nights

**A/N: Sorry for the late update, been sick for a week now and it's affecting my mind in terms of writing ; w;**

** I'll try to update A.S.A.P even though I'm sick(way to push yourself, Kuu.)**

**(TheAnonymous): *gives money to the NicoMaki Program commitee* Maki-chan's just being herself, fierce like a panther, rawr.**

**(KidoTsubomi22): It's one of my favorite songs too~ Though Snow Halation's obviously the best(dem feels *sniff*)**

**(Dash24zappshift): I'd probably be inserting some songs along the way for some turn of events =w = also, NicoMaki program's not for sale(unless you buy the whole ship authority, why nawt)**

**(equastar): The future chapters might explain why Maki sang that song, try guessing~**

**(Kurama16): Well, I'm trying to keep this rated T so chances of it happening is as slim as potatoes flying.**

**(IceCream): Why not both? (reason why I made that other fanfic)**

**with Midterms coming up, my pace will be slower(hate this ; w;) + this sickness... meh, I'll have Doctor Maki to take care of me for the meantime.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Love Live! *cries***

* * *

As soon as the two got back to the camp, Maki introduced herself to Kotori and Honoka while they continued to indulge themselves with the perfectly cooked boar meat. Seeing how scrumptious the food looked like, Maki spared no time before asking Nico a plate and utensils. As she sliced the meat neatly with her knife, Honoka hugged Maki from behind.

"Hey, what was that for!" Maki shrieked with a frown.

"It was my way of saying hello, silly~" Honoka replied with a huge grin on her face. Not wanting to get into a fight, Maki simply ignored Honoka's action and continued to slice a part of the meat. She placed the sliced meat on her plate, sat down beside Nico and by the time she took a bite from it, her eyes sparkled due to the tingling tastes that the meat produced in her taste buds.

Nico stared at Maki as this happened, mentally memorizing each pixel into her mind.

"Here Eli, say ahh~" Nozomi said as she forked a slice from her plate directed it to Eli's mouth. The blonde started to blush and blushed even more as the fork moved closer into her mouth.

"N-not in front of the others, Nozomi." Eli looked away, leaving the meat uneaten.

"Come on now, Elicchi. I know you always lick my fork when I'm not looking~" she teased with a smirk while still attempting to feed Eli.

Turning back to Nozomi, "H-how did you-" her lips were met with the fork that has touched Nozomi's kissable lips. "mmm!" it forced its way into her mouth which made her forced to eat the meat that it impaled with its sharp ends. Eli chewed the meat and looked at Nozomi as her face burnt up.

"G-geez... I can feed myself you know..." Eli pouted which Nozomi found amusing.

"I just want to feed my adorable Elicchi, that's all." Nozomi smiled at the intensely blushing Eli.

"So... Nico, Maki, why did it take you guys 30 minutes to go back here?" Umi asked, which made Nico and Maki blush intensely at the same time.

"Oh~ I wonder what they were doing in front of the beautiful moon~" Nozomi teasingly commented.

"S-shut up, Nozomi. It's none of your business." Nico responded.

"Alright, alright" Nozomi said as she made a peace sign while smiling, "Oh that reminds me, where will Kotori and Honoka be going after this?"

"Ah..." Kotori looked down on her feet with grief. "I don't know... Me and Honoka will probably be heading back to the road since we have nowhere to go back to." she sighed.

"Why not join us in our quest in saving the world?" Nozomi said as she gave them a smile.

"Eh?"

"If you have nowhere else to go, we would be happy to accept you, right guys?"

Everyone nodded in reply.

"Really?" Kotori asked for confirmation.

"Really."

She looked back at her friend. "Did you hear that, Honoka-chan?" tears started to form on her eyes.

"Y-yeah... I did." tears also formed on her eyes. "I can't believe it... We finally found it..." Honoka hugged Kotori tightly. "We finally... Found it..." she let out her tears which she had held for these past years. Kotori hugged her back in comfort.

As soon as they finished eating, Maki and Nico washed the dishes near the river. Eli, Nozomi and Honoka went into the left tent to get some early sleep while Umi, Kotori and Anju stayed behind and watched the stars together as the bonfire warmed their bodies. After some time, Nico and Maki returned back to camp and they all decided to call it a day. Kotori slept with Anju and Umi which left Nico and Maki together with the same tent, undisturbed by a third party.

It has been 3 hours ever since all of them fell asleep... Well... Most of them. Thinking about it, it was Nico and Maki's first night sleeping with together.

"...Nico-chan, are you still awake?" Maki asked.

"...Yeah." Nico replied. Maki squirmed her way Nico's back and hugged her.

"W-what are yo-"

"I can't sleep without hugging something you know..." Maki muttered as her cheeks turned pinkish red, she thanked the heavens that she can't be seen by Nico.

"Hehe, Maki-chan's such a child~ I bet you can't fall asleep without me after this night~" Nico teased which made the princess even more flustered as a new shade of pink overlapped the old one.

"T-that's not true, I-Idiot!" Maki refuted.

"Don't call me an idiot!" Nico turned to the flushed Maki and stared at her.

Feeling embarrassed by the situation she's in now, Maki tried to avert her eyes to prevent her from blushing even further but was stopped by Nico's hands. Her eyes was now stuck in a trance after taking a gaze into Nico's crimson eyes. They soon snapped back to reality and didn't even realize that they were staring into each other's eyes for 30 minutes.

"Nico-chan..." Maki mumbled.

"What is it, Maki-chan?" Nico responded. Maki's face flushed even further.

"could you..." Maki tried to burrow her head into her shirt, "k-kiss me while... Sleeping?"

Nico's face instantly turned red as she heard the words coming out from Maki's mouth.

"B-but, we can't b-breath y-you know?" Nico said as she covers her face which was also turning so red.

"Fine..." Maki said in a depressing tone as she cursed logic for doing this to her, "can we at least hug while sleeping?" she said as she tucked herself into the blanket while moving even closer to Nico.

"All right," Nico hugged Maki and smiled. With the feeling of completion in their hearts, the two soon fell into a slumber.

_Nico-chan..._

"Mmm... Maki-chan..." Nico said.

_Nico-chan... Wake up..._

"A few more minutes... Maki-cha-"

_Smooch_

Nico was immediately woken up by Maki's morning kiss.

"Good morning, Nico-chan." Maki said after releasing Nico's lips. The raven haired girl blushed.

"G-good morning, Maki-chan..." Nico muttered while trying to cover her blushes.

"Let's go and wake the others u-" Nico interrupted her with a kiss.

"Maybe later~" Nico said as she pounced on Maki and kissed her like there was no tomorrow.

"Umi-chan~" Kotori said in a sweet tone which woke the bluenette up.

Umi rubbed her eyes and said, "Mmm... What is it, Kotori-chan?"

"Good morning~" she smiled.

"Ah, Good morning." Umi replied. She got up and went outside to stretch in front of the sun.

Umi looked back and asked Kotori, "By the way, Where's Anju?"

"Hmm..." Kotori intertwined her fingers. "If I remember correctly, she went to the forest and gathered some food."

"Oh, I see." Umi looked at the left tent and went inside to see Honoka being squished Nozomi and Eli. She giggled. "They look like parents protecting their child from harm."

She left the tent and checked the other tent which contained Nico being on top of Maki while Nico's doing her Nico Nii pose, both of which are still asleep. Umi unable to look at the scene much longer decided to go back to the outside and sat down near the stream.

"What's wrong, Umi-chan?" Kotori asked as went and sat beside her.

"Nothing, just seeing the others being so close makes me feel that I'm alone. That's all." Umi heaved a sigh.

"You're not alone, Umi-chan. Everyone's here for you~" Kotori said smiling.

"It's not that, Kotori-chan." Umi replied.

"Huh? What did you mean about being alone then?" Kotori asked as she tilted her head.

"I-It's you k-know..." Umi stuttered which made Kotori even more confused. The ash gray haired girl crept near Umi which made her cheeks turn a little pink.

"What is it, Umi-chan? I don't get what you mean."

"I-It's... You know! L-L"

"L? Like? Love?" Kotori assumed.

"Y-Yeah! L-Lo..ve..." Umi covered her face from embarrassment.

"Ah... Well, I've been afraid of falling in love ever since a long time ago... So I don't really get what you're feeling... Sorry Umi-chan." Kotori muttered as her face drooped down.

"A-ah..." Umi remembered Kotori being someone who was admired by her whole town which made guys have interest in her. "B-but, It's not like you can't fall in love, right!?" Umi cried out.

"Yup, but I'm not so sure if I can even find my partner in this vast world."

Umi patted Kotori on the back. "I'm sure you will find that person, just don't give up." Umi said and gave the girl a smile.

"You're right." Kotori got up and raised both of her arms up, "I'm not going to give up!"

Umi let out a sigh of relief as solace was brought in her and Kotori's problem. Moments later Anju showed up behind the thick bushes behind them.

"I found tons of berries back there~" Anju opened the basket which indeed had a plentiful amount of berries. "Don't worry, they're not poisonous. I'll put it in the tent so we can eat it once everybody's awake." Anju gave the two a smile before walking towards the right tent.

With the two being all alone together again, Kotori re-initiated the conversation.

"So... Umi-chan... Who do you like?" Kotori asked aloofly.

Shocked by the question, Umi tried to stand up. "Wha-what are you sa-" accidentally, Umi lost her balance which made her fall down to the stream.

Kotori stood up and went to Umi with a worried look. "A-are you okay, Umi-chan?"

"Y-yeah... Let me just," as she attempted to regain her composure, she grabbed Kotori by the hem of her skirt but fell down again, bringing Kotori with her. "O-ow ow ow... Sorry about that Kotor-" words stopped coming out of her mouth as she saw Kotori who was on top of her intensely gazing into her eyes. Her heart started to pound faster. Kotori's gaze placed her into a trance in which both had succumbed to. Instinctively, their face moved towards each other closer and closer. Within a few centimeters before their lips landed, Anju suddenly came out of the tent and ran towards them.

"Hey! Are you guys alright?" Anju asked. The two instantly pulled back with their face flushed. Kotori was the first to stand up reason being her on top. Umi soon followed.

"Y-yeah, we're fine. We just fell down the stream, that's all." Umi explained.

"That's right, don't worry about us Anju-chan ehehehe~" Kotori said while sheepishly laughing. Anju looked both at them with a stare which made both of them flinch for no reason.

"All right, you guys have to dry up your clothes as soon as possible if you don't want to catch a fever or something."

"Yeah." Umi took out her top and bottom which revealed her slender body still in bikini. Kotori tried to look away but found it difficulty in ignoring such a sight waiting for her eyes to scan. She took quick glances which Umi didn't notice.

"You too, Kotori-chan." Umi said.

"Uegh!? A-all right." Kotori began to remove her top and bottom which Umi found unable to not ignore. As soon as Kotori finished removing her clothes, Umi was still staring at her which made her feel somewhat embarrassed.

"D-don't stare at me, Umi-chan." Kotori pouted while covering her chest. Umi's face flushed even more as she averted her eyes.

They hanged their clothes to a high point which was near the camp where air and the sun can dry them. They went back to where Anju was, "Hey, since both of you are on your undergarments, why not take a dip on the stream and relax?" Anju suggested.

"Hmm... Well, I could take a use of a good bath." Umi said.

"Eheh, Me too." Kotori added.

"All right, I'll be joining too then." Anju removed her shirt and skirt revealing her perfect body. Kotori felt a slight hint of jealousy from Anju's womanly figure. Anju took a head start and went to take a dip.

She later then lied against the shallow waters. "Ahh... It's quite relaxing." Anju said as water flowed past her enticing thighs. "Come on Umi, Kotori, the water's good~" she said as she gestured her finger curling. The two nodded. Kotori and Umi soon found themselves in a relaxed state as the streams of water rushed past their arms and legs.

Moments later, Honoka woke up. The girl yawned while extending her arms upward which landed on Eri and Nozomi's face.

"Ow!" the two shouted in unison.

"Ah, sorry about that..." Honoka murmured.

"It's okay, we know that you didn't mean it." Nozomi pardoned with a smile.

"Thank you and good morning~" Honoka soon stood up and stretched her arms. "What will we be doing today?" she asked.

"Well, we'll be departing once everyone's awake. Can you check up on the others and see if they're awake?" Eli requested.

"Sure thing, Eli-chan!" Honoka head out of the tent leaving the two alone.

"Your sleeping was so cute a few hours ago, Elicchi." Nozomi teased. Eli's face immediately turned red.

"Y-you... were awake?" Eli stammered.

"Yup~" Nozomi caressed the blonde's face. "I just decided to not wake you up because

I'm sure you've been tired ever since the trip."

"Nozomi..." Eli held the hand Nozomi used to caress her face. "Thank you, I needed that."

"No problem~" she gave the blonde a kiss on the lips before getting up, she then offered a hand to Eli. "Let's go?"

"Yeah, let's go." Eli pulled herself with Nozomi's hand and went out of the tent together.

"N-Nico-chan... Wake up, you're heavy." Maki complained as she tried to push Nico who was on top of her.

"N-Nico-chan!" she shouted. The girl still didn't wake up.

_G-geez... How can I wake Nico-chan up? _she mused with a frown.

_Oh... I know... _Maki placed both of her hands on Nico's waists. "If you won't wake up, I'll tickle you Nico-chan~" no response. "Nico-chan~" still no response, Maki prepared her fingers and counted down from 1 to 5. Without warning Nico, Maki's fingers digged in Nico's waist and proceeded in tickling her without stopping.

"AHAHHAHA STOP STOP STOP MAKI-CHAN AHAAAAA!"

"Nnnnope~"

"STOP STOP AHAHAHHAAA MAKI-CHANNNNN!"

Maki's barrage of tickles was soon stopped by Nico's catapult kiss to the lips.

"Mmm!" They soon pulled out after the kiss.

"T-that was foul play, Nico-chan..." Maki muttered, averting her eyes.

"I-It's your fault that you tickled me!" Nico retorted while blushing.

"... So... Can we do it again... P-properly of course..." Maki said, still averting her eyes from Nico. Nico's face turned red even more.

"O-okay." Nico prowled closer to Maki, she closed her eyes in preparation for a second kiss. Suddenly...

Honoka entered the tent. "Wake up!" she shouted, the two looked at her with chaos written all over their faces. "Oh... Was I interrupting something?" Honoka asked with sweat dropping all over her face.

"G-Get out!" the two said in unison while throwing their pillows towards Honoka which she successfully evaded. Honoka ran towards Eli and Nozomi and gasped for air while her cheeks were puffing red.

"W-what's wrong Honoka?" Eli asked.

Honoka sighed. "I... Might have seen too much..." she replied. As she tries to calm herself down, the thoughts of what just happened just keeps on coming back to her making her face even more flushed than it was before.

"Hmm... Just don't think about it too much, okay?" Eli said as she patted Honoka's back. "Umi, Kotori, Anju, pack your stuff, we know where we're headed to next!"

"Ah, okay!" Umi shouted as she splashed Kotori with water one more time.

"Fuah! No fair Umi-chan!" Kotori countered her by doing the same.

"I'll go and pack our things, you guys take your time." Anju pulled herself out of the stream and head back to their tent. She placed all the stuff to their owner's bags, food, pillows, medicines and weapons. "There we go." she tried to pull the bag but suddenly a red mark appeared on her right shoulder. "Augh... Not again..." the mark soon vanished leaving no further traces behind. "Ahh.. Ah..." she grabbed a roll of gauze out of her bag and wrapped it on the shoulder where the mark appeared. "I hope nobody, especially Umi, will discover this secret..."

Minutes later, the group gathered to the middle of the camp. "Okay, is everybody ready?" Eli asked.

"Yup!" everyone said in unison.

"Okay then, let's go!" Everyone soon walked inside the forest and will soon arrive in a town to which fighting is the norm.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry if I had some(or even lots) grammatic errors~ my head's been fuzzy 24/7, seriously. now I'm off to the hospital to get myself checked.**

**Maki: I'm here you know...**

**Kuu: oh yeah... *rests on bed waiting for Maki to heal me back to health***

**Maki: *brings out a huge syringe and pierces Kuu's hand with it***

**Kuu: OH F- AHHHH *passes out***

**Maki: Don't worry, Kuu's (still) alive, stay tuned~**


	13. White Masked Pleasure

**Okay! Sorry for the late update, had to do tons of stuff for our project and other personal stuff(don't want to talk about it)**

**It's pretty much a day before Kotori's birthday, what will you guys be preparing? mufu~**

**(equastar): NOOO I don't like getting stab ; n;**

**(Kurama16): No problem~ just don't lose too much blood or you'll end up like me! **

**(Dash24zappshift): Zappy~ thanks ; w; **

**(kuro): Sorry for the late update~**

**(NekoNicoZ): I'm not sure xD I pretty much had the whole story set out but I tend to lose track, so eh. (that name though, reminds me of my twinnie in another game)**

**I'm sorry if this is chapter's kinda short, It's already 2am in here and I have classes in the next 5 hours, so I'll go sleep no *pats blankie***

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live!**

* * *

"Are we there yet?" Maki complained. It has been two hours ever since they have started climbing the mountain which was hiding their destination. Due to it's rocky terrain, the journey slowly crumbled Maki's patience bit by bit slowly.

"Now now, Maki. We're almost there." Umi replied as her eyes glistened with delight. The altitude seems to have been quite nostalgic for her. Back when her dad was still alive, the bluenette was usually brought to the mountains which she had found addicting. "We're almost there, the mountain peak!" she shouted then followed up with a laugh.

"Umi seems a bit... off... Don't you think so, Kotori-chan?" Honoka asked as she looked back to see an amused Kotori beside her. Seeing how her friend was too focused on the personality switched Umi, she crept closer and whispered. "Kotori-chan?"

"Y-yes Honoka-chan!?" Kotori shrieked in surprise.

"Don't you think that Umi's been acting weird ever since we've started walking?" Honoka asked for a second time. Kotori sheepishly chuckled.

"I have no idea what you're talking about Honoka-chan~ ehehehehe~" Kotori's pace fastened, creating a distance between her from Honoka.

"Hmm... Is something wrong, Kotori-chan?" Honoka asked as she tilted her head.

"Nothing's wrong~ don't worry about me, Honoka-chan~"

"Okay!" Honoka shouted. The ginger climbed closer to Umi and took the gamble by jumping at the bluenette from behind. "To the mountain peak!"

Miraculously, Umi did not seem to mind Honoka. "T-to the mountain peak!" Umi, in full force rushed to the top and soon found herself on the peak. "The mountain peak!"

"We did it, Umi-chan!" Honoka hugged Umi, "We did it!"

"D-don't hug me too tightly, Honoka... I need... Air..." Umi said while panting. Soon, the others emerged behind them.

"Umi, you were going too fast." Eli complained.

"Sorry about that..." Umi said, "It's just... The mountain peak..."

"It's fine... Anyways, we're all here now." Eli looked down and see's the town which was covered with a thick fog. "That's the town. Nozomi, can you bring us down there?"

Nozomi nodded. She took out a bottle and poured it on everyone's feet. "There, feel free to walk on air everyone~"

"Wait a minute, why didn't we just use that in the first place!?" Nico exclaimed. Everyone gave her an "oh" look, including Nozomi.

"I guess I had forgotten about it before Eli told me, sorry~" Nozomi clasped her hands, leaving Nico no choice but to forgive her.

Nico let out a sigh. "it's fine... It's all in the past now. We just have to walk on air right?"

Nozomi let out a smile. "Yeah, the duration of the potion's only 30 minutes, so we must make haste."

"Let's go!" Eli commanded. Kotori took a headstart before anyone else in the group did. Her hair swayed freely at the breeze of the high altitude they were in.

"This is fun!" Kotori shouted. The sight itself was elegant enough to make Umi smile. The image of Kotori's angelic smile embedded itself into the bluenette's mind. She soon got back into her track and joined the greynette. The rest of the group followed.

With each step they made, white feathers came out below their feet out of nowhere which somewhat made Kotori cringe. It took them a full 20 minutes before landing on their destination. With some spare time of the magic implanted to them , Nico decided to tease her partner.

"You can never catch me, Maki-chan!" Nico proclaimed as she ran as fast as she could. This act left a poor Maki behind her tracks.

"N-Nico-chan... Don't..." tears soon formed on Maki's eyelids, "don't leave... Me..." moments later, Nico rushed back to Maki.

"Of course I wouldn't leave you! Don't cry, okay? It'll be all right." Nico gave Maki a hug for comfort. Suddenly, a smirked was shown on Maki's face. The red head cuddled Nico like there was no tomorrow.

"H-Hey, M-Maki-chan! T-t-this is too much, oh shoot my nose is bleeding. Help!" Nico cried out which the rest ignored. "Call an ambulance! I need blood tranfusion!" Maki pulled Nico's face and dragged her into a kiss.

"You wouldn't be needing a blood transfusion, all you will be needing is me." Maki teased with a wink. Nico soon passed out.

"... Did Maki just..." Eli sighed. "I'm worried how both of you will control yourselves in the future."

Maki raised an eyebrow, "what do you mean?" Nozomi crept closer to Maki and whispered something which made the red head's face mix with the color of her hair.

"Guess that clear some things up." Nozomi smiled. She then took a glance on the bluenette and greynette who were chatting happily. Seeing Umi smile while focusing on the greynette intensively piqued her interest between the two. Nozomi then snuck behind the two and gave Umi one of the biggest shocks in her life. "What are you two lovebirds talking about?"

"L-l-l-lovebirds!?" Umi stuttered nervously, her cheeks soon set itself ablaze as Kotori was staring into her intensely. "W-why are you staring at me, Kotori?" Umi averted her eyes as she asked the greynette.

"What's a lovebird?" Kotori asked. Surprised by the greynette's innocence, Nozomi skedaddled her way back to Eli, leaving an ocean burning in flames and a clueless bird wandering its way to it's unclear journey.

"It was unnecessary for you to do that, Nozomi." Eli said straightforwardly.

"Oh my~ is Elicchi jealous that I'm giving other members so much attention~?" Nozomi teased, earning a blush from the blonde.

"N-No... Yes!... M-maybe..." the blonde's fingers fidgeted. "Y-you belong to me... So..." Eli covered her face in embarrassment as she find herself unable to say the last few words. Nozomi patted her on the head.

"Of course I'm yours, forever and ever." Nozomi smiled.

"Nozomi..." Eli averted her eyes to prevent Nozomi from seeing her smile because of what was just said.

"Sorry to interrupt your lovey-dovey business, but shouldn't we get going?" Anju said.

"Yeah, sorry about that... Let's go everyone." Eli commanded, everyone, including Nico who was currently being carried by Maki went forth to the mist covered enigmatic town.

"Hey hey, Anju." Honoka bothered. Anju simply let out a princess-like smile.

"What is it, Honoka-san?"

"What's lovey-dovey business?"

"You'll know it when you're older." Anju answered.

"D'aw, I want to know now!" Honoka pouted.

Anju let out another simple smile and walked away with the rest of the group. Honoka soon followed, with her thoughts still clinging on what "lovey-dovey" is.

The group soon found themselves into the mist. Without a single light guiding their way, they found themselves lost after 30 minutes of mindless walking.

"Hmm, seems that we're lost." Eli said.

"Ah, I almost forgot." Kotori pulled out her scepter and swung it to the air.

"What are you doing, Kotori?" Umi asked. Kotori simply smiled at her, the scepter soon shined bright and imprinted some magic in everybody's eyes.

"Wait, that house wasn't supposed to be there!" Eli exclaimed. Everyone was in shock of what Kotori had just done. "What did you do, Kotori?"

"I simply enhanced everyone's vision~ "

"Harasho..."

"Oooo, Hi birdy!" Honoka waved to the bird which was way beyond their scope, Umi gave herself a facepalm while Nozomi giggled.

"Hey, what's that!?" Eli pointed to her east which revealed a town covered in huge bubble.

"...a bubble?" Umi pondered. Everyone knew it was weird for a town to be covered in a bubble, but for some odd reason, it gave off an aura which somewhat says that there's someone with great power reigning over it.

"It's... Weird..." Maki murmured, "I've felt this before... I just can't remember when did I last feel it..." Nico's eyes soon opened and gave Maki a peck to the cheek.

"Good morning Maki-chan~"

"Ue!"

By intincts, Maki dropped Nico to the floor and covered her eyes from embarrassment. Nico fell butt first.

"Ow! That hurts you know!" Nico scowled. She rubbed her bottom to ease the pain. she then gave Maki a grimacing look, "Why did you have to drop me, idiot!"

"D-don't call me an idiot! And you shouldn't surprise me like that!" Maki retorted. Feeling bad for the younger one, Nico hugged Maki from behind.

"I'm sorry, okay?" she hugged even tighter.

"... Just do it in the lips next time..." Maki embarrassingly muttered. Nico's cheeks also began to flare up too.

"Erm... So, are you all fine with us going to that place?" Eri asked, trying as best as possible in keeping her poise after hearing Maki's bold confession. Everyone(Nozomi included) nodded with a tint of pink in their cheeks.

"A-all right, let's go then..."

As they walked through the path which was supposed to bring them directly to the town, they were met with a fork path. Eli scratched her head as she thinks on which path to choose.

_Hmm... Left or right... _She mused. Nico, who became impatient with Eli swiftly drifted off to the left path while dragging Maki along. "H-hey, where are you going Nico!"

Nico stopped on her tracks, "It was written all over your face that you can't decided on which path to take, Eli. So I'm saying that we go left."

"B-but..."

"I agree with Nicocchi. You should ask us if you're ever stuck Elicchi, we're always here to help you." the words that Nozomi spoke calmed the tense Eli, the blonde took a breath and let it all out.

"Thanks Nozomi, everyone, let's go and have ourselves an adventure we'll never forget!" the group cried out and together, walked to the path they have all chosen.

With each twist and turn they made, the atmosphere of which the path they had taken grew darker and heavier. Houses started to appear with flickering lights within it, this resulted to Honoka flinching occassionaly. As they delve deeper, the premises behind slowly disappeared as the mist covers them, covering the vision behind them. Without a single step lost, they managed to get out of the heavy atmosphere and found a huge gate in front of them.

The gate was 20 feet long and was covered with gold platings. Seeing it as a deadpath, Kotori tried to back away but was commanded to stay put by Eli. A few seconds after, the gate slowly pulled back its rails and gave passage to the group. "Uwah, what happened?" Honoka amazed by what just happened entered the unknown territory without second thought. In an instant, the gates closed itself, trapping Honoka inside it.

"Eugh, How can I get out now!?" Honoka wailed. Umi pulled out her guns and shot at the gate. By the time the bullet collided with one of the parts of the rails, a barrier magically appeared and bounced the bullet back to Umi which she immediately dodged.

"What the..." Umi bit her tongue in anger, seeing as to why her attack failed. A portal soon appeared behind Honoka and began to play a voice from whom they do not know.

"_If you want your friend here back, you have to go back and pick the other path! Once you reach the gate there, only one can participate as the "challenger" who'll be having a series of fights before facing me! The champion of the Flying Haven!" the portal soon disappeared along with the voice that came with it._

"You guys can go there, I'll stay here and wait for you guys to pick me up!" Honoka said.

Nozomi shook her head in decline.

"I'll stay with you Honoka-chan, since only one can challenge the champion, it's best to have at least one person to keep Honoka in company." Nozomi declared. Eli then walked closer to Nozomi's side.

"I'll be with you too, you guys go ahead, We trust you." hearing Eli's warm words, the rest ran as fast as they could and within minutes, reached the other gate in which they were told to.

"I should go." Umi declared. She took a step forward but was pulled back by Anju.

"It's times like these where I shine~ leave this to me." Anju smiled at the group and walked forward, the gate reacted to Anju and opened itself. The auburnette entered the gate and disappeared in thin air.

"Wha-" everyone was shocked about what just happened. Soon a portal again appeared in front of the gate.

"_Don't worry, I just teleported your friend to the stadium. Enter this portal so you'll be teleported into one of the front row seats which I reserved for you all!"_

Without a moment to lose, they entered the portal and was brought into a stadium where they see Anju, without any weapons at hand standed in the center, smiling.

"This will be fun~" Anju muttered as a small gate in front of her slowly escalated, releasing her first enemy.


	14. Auburn Stranded Life

**A/N: BLEUGH! Is what something that Tri loves to say. Really, you guys should join our chat group. These couples are so meant for each other. Who knows, you might even see them "getting it on~". anyways, This is quite a short chapter if you ask me(Sorry!) and with my slow updates, I'm also sorry about that. I'll be buying pizza while this chapter Airs itself, so eh, Ciao.**

**(KidoTsubomi22): D'aw~ I'd love to see that illustration of yours xD If you could, show it to me~**

**(lunarsaber12): Nahh~ Anju's really the mature type, she won't be doing stuff such as betrayal(or will she?)**

**(Dash24zappshift): Will do Zappy-kouhai~ seriously, you have too much split personalities.**

**(Kurama16): Thanks xD I'm sorry if some chapters will be lacking some NicoMaki moments, I tend to find the need to put some seriousness in some chapters.**

**(NicoMaki4Evah): Thanks~ and not really, I used to play Aura Kingdom(IGN Nico ufufufu founders~) but quickly got tired(well, 6 months was quite a good run) due to its repetitive content. Although I did(somewhat) get the idea of Umi's role in that game xD.**

**P.S: Feel Free to pm me for the Chat link if you want to see some Tri and her Wifey having some good action! *smirks***

* * *

The tension of the arena was heavy. with the crowds growling and shouting, Anju had this huge grin in her face which others cannot really help but wonder why. Without a single weapon in her hand, the majority of the audience laughed and boo'd at her due to them seeing her as an "easy target". Without making a dramatic entrance, it was obvious that she had gotten the wrong side with the crowd.

_Fufu... It doesn't matter. I don't care if the whole world hates me, as long as they're safe, I'm willing to bet my life in the line. _Anju thought to herself.

Still waiting for her opponent to come to the stage, she surveyed the crowd and finds Kotori, Nico, Maki and Umi at her right. She gave them a smile which they found odd.

"Don't you think that Anju's acting kinda too... carefree?" Nico asked as she looked at Maki who was beside her.

"I'm not sure..." Maki twirled her hair in a counter clockwise manner, "for some reason, she looks determined to win if you ask me."

"..." Umi concentrated at Anju, "I sense... something different about her."

Kotori gave Umi a confused look, "What do you mean, Umi-chan?"

"I can't find myself in saying it in words... It's just, she's giving off a different aura. Something similar to when we first met; however, it's something much stronger."

As Anju waited on the middle of the arena, Tsubasa, who was sitting on the sky tapped the microphone a few times, "Ahh Ahh testing testing one two three, welcome everyone to the 43rd tournament of the Sky Arena! This is your host, Kira Tsubasa!" Tsubasa gave them a wink which was shown on a huge screen which everyone can see, the crowd let out their loudest yells for joy and excitement. "Ehehe~ I'm glad you're all pumped up today~ now! Here we have a new face who registered in the last second, I'm not sure if she has what it takes to even beat the first opponent. Who knows~ she might be holding some sort of hidden power, give your cheers to Anju Yuuki!"

Instead of hearing a cheer, laughs filled out the whole arena. As a result, one of Nico's patience broke out and scowled at the crowd, "You may all be laughing, but I know that Anju is _wayyyyyyy _stronger than all of you! You're all just weaklings who I bet can't even fight against an ant!"

"Hey little girl, we're not weak!" a guy at the back who was as tall as Nozomi shouted. Hearing a certain phrase which Nico had always hated. She stood up and pulled out her pole arm and pointed it at the guy.

"Don't you dare call me a little girl! I'll have you know that I participated in the recent Sonoda conflict!" the crowd was struck in silence. It's been said that the Sonoda conflict was spreaded throughout the whole continent in an epidemic pace. Without a king to protect the town from harm and with the "prince" who was supposed to be the heir of the throne decided to "run away", the whole town was struck with confusion as it wanders itself without a leader.

Maki pulled Nico down, "Stop it, Nico-chan. I don't want you to get into trouble."

Nico sighed, "If Maki-chan says so." she sat down, hid her pole arm in her bag(game logic) and gave Maki a pout. Nico was then patted by Maki for comfort.

"Erm... Sorry about that commotion everyone. Anyways! Here in our other side is a Dark Mage of the Underworld! Sachiko Tanaka!"

Slowly, Sachiko emerged from the shadows with her blue wand held high, "Kukuku, The time has finally come for me to conquer this world with darkness!"

Anju let out a smirk, "Hmm~ Interesting~"

Sachiko walked towards Anju and pointed her wand at her showing hostility. "You can't stop me, human."

"Now that our fighters here have met, let's get this fight on the way!" Tsubasa shouted. "Are you sure you're gonna be fighting unarmed, Anju?"

"Yup~" Anju replied with a smile.

"You'll regret underestimating me, Human!" Sachiko scowled. After a minute of staring into each others eyes, a bell rang indicating the start of the match.

Sachiko pointed her wand to the ground, "Come out, Dark Devoider!" she commanded. A huge circle spreaded out off her feet and summoned a huge, dog structured animal. Its bones were visible to the whole crowd which some felt disgusted to while the others were excited upon seeing its appearance.

"This is my familiar, Dark Devoider. Whatever it touches except me disappears into the endless void." Sachiko boasted.

"Fufu, quite the interesting pet you got there." Anju said with her head held high, "however, it won't be enough to beat me."

Angered, Sachiko commanded her familiar. "Dark Devoider! Tear that pile of trash limb by limb!" upon hearing its master, the familiar ran towards Anju who was still keeping a smile in her face.

"Anju, watch out!" Umi shouted. The familiar opened its vicious mouth as it readied itself to pounce Anju by her shoulder. In the last split second, Anju dodged the attack and axe kicked the dog-like creature which pummeled it to the ground and rebounded to the air. The familiar let out a whimper on the air as it descended back to the ground. _Thud _it goes, although it was not enough to defeat the familiar.

"That was impressive, I tell you that. But too bad for you that my familiar won't go down that easily!" she pointed and shot three dark spherical objects to her familiar which made the familiar's body even bigger and covered more skin. Its eyes changed from yellow to red as these changes happened.

"Hmm~ I'm sure I broke a rib or two on that dog of yours, guess it needs more _discipline_~" Anju pulled out a whip from her back pocket and stared at the dog with sadistic eyes, "Now come~ I'll treat you well~"

"Ohoh~ I guess Anju had a weapon with her afterall! Gosh those sadistic eyes gives me the chills(but it's so sexy at the same time)" Tsubasa announced.

"Go Anju!" Kotori cheered on. Anju looked and smiled at her as thanks.

She extended her whip and whipped it on the ground, "Come~" she taunted. The beast galloped its way towards Anju at a frightening speed which did not faze Anju one bit. As the distance between them closen, Anju whips the leg of the beast which forced the beast to wail in pain although this didn't stop the beast from trying its best to fight back, it charged towards again and again but all had lead to the same result. After its 7th attempt, the beast fell and dissipated into nothingness.

The crowd was struck with silence as this happened. A 20-feet monster to be taken down by a single woman with a whip, such a feat is nearly impossible if done by a normal human.

"Kuh... You seem to be no ordinary human, what are you!" Sachiko shouted.

Anju simply smiled, "I'm just your ordinary human with her friends by my side~ by the way, I don't really feel satisfied yet, so could you please be my toy since your familiar ran away from you?"

"D-don't underestimate the Wizard of the Abyss!" as she started to chant a spell, a huge violet circle expanded once again below her feet which nearly blinded the audience due to its bright luster. In that span of time, a huge medium-sized unknown dark sphere with electric surging from its outer shell was formed at the tip of Sachiko's wand.

"W-what the, that's too dangerous!" Tsubasa shouted, "Please stop her, Anju!"

"You don't even need to tell me that." Anju rushed to the wall and sprinted her way up with ease, as she reached the peak of the arena which Sachiko was at, she took out four daggers and threw them at the sphere.

"W-what have you done!" Sachiko shouted as she gave Anju a grimace look.

"Obviously saving my friends from harm" no longer having full control of the dark matter, the sphere exploded at a very small radius but was big enough to consume the pour Sachiko with it. Anju slowly fell down from the sky and landed safely.

"Oh... That was... AWESOME! Right people!?"

The crowd replied with their shouts of excitement. Nico, Maki, Umi and Kotori's eyes widened, seeing someone to "die" in front of them. Nico hugged the shivering Maki tightly as the sight was too brutal for the young one.

"What happened... To Sachiko?" Kotori mumbled.

"I don't know Kotori... I don't know..." Umi tilted her head down and thought to herself, _Is it really necessary for someone to lose their lives...?_

"With that, Yuuki Anju-san's the winner! However! This tournament is far from over! Our next match is gonna be interesting... If I may ask, Yuuki-san, can you please vacate to your friends for a while for the next two challengers to face off?"

Anju nodded in response. She then walked towards the others and sat beside them hoping to get a praise from at least one of them. Umi clutched Anju's shoulder, shivering, "Was it really necessary? For that Sachiko girl to disappear?"

"Well... If I didn't do that, something might have happened to you girls, there was no choice." Anju replied.

"Still..." Umi gripped even harder.

Anju held Umi's hand which was on her shoulder and gave it a gentle grip, "I don't want you to hate me, I'm trying to be someone who I could be of help to you all with the best of my abilities, so please... Forgive me just this once."

Umi sniffed, "... All right..."

Little did the two know that Kotori, who was beside them the whole time was staring at the two with burning jealousy. She knew that it was a bad time to try and get closer to the bluenette, but she knows that she wants the bluenette's attention to be only centered to her alone. She knows that Anju was just a friend of Umi, but she can't help but wonder why her heart pains up if she were to see the bluenette to act close to someone other than her. She gripped her skirts hem tightly as an attempt in pushing all the jealousy burning inside her heart. "Umi-cha-"

"-Looks like the match is over! Since Rebecca's down, I guess Shiga Hitomi's the winner!" Tsubusa shouted, announcing what just happened in the span of Anju's resting time.

"What the, that was too fast." Umi looked at the scene, seeing a blonde who was named Rebecca one-sidedly beaten up by the girl who was standing beside her with a sharp katana on her hand.

"Tch, there was no demon within her, why am I even participating in this massacre." the girl said but was not heard by everyone due to the loud cheers. The girl turned back and head to the chambers in which she emerged from earlier, moments later, two guys with a came out of the gate in which Rebecca used and carried her away on a stretcher.

"Looks like there's lots of strong opponents for you to face, Anju" Umi said.

"Don't worry," Anju fist pumped at the air, "I'll do whatever it takes to win and free Honoka from that wicked gate."


	15. Green Shivering Search

**A/N: Sorry for the late update! Stupid projects piling up ; w; so prepare for turtle paced updates~ (also, I'm losing motivation(in life). Maybe it's because of the stress. Don't worry, it might come back... eventually.)**

**(KidoTsubomi22): really? I could've sworn I balanced out Anju to some point o Ao (btw, that Kotori fanfic is loveeee)**

**(NekoNicoZ): this part of the story will lean more on the ways of how Anju will save Honoka xD sorry if it's gonna lack some NicoMaki but don't worry! I'm not giving up!**

**(Kurama16): xD Maki's love love hug is too powerful~**

**(lianacim14): I'll try my best~ but for now, it might be slow due to the busy schedule I'll be having.**

**Also, this chapter's probably rated M due to the first parts, just to warn you guys!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live! (AnjuxEveryone ftw)**

* * *

Three fights has passed ever since Anju stepped out of the battlefield. Soon, the 20-minute mark has passed on the 4th match of the each passing minute, the pain and bloodlust that the two fighters emitted within the arena grew bigger and bigger. In the past two battles, blood sprayed as each of the fighters swung their weapons with all their might, forming open wounds on their opponent's body.

Back to the current match, one of them equipped with a flail looked like she was about to give up. Breathing slower compared to an unscathed human, it was certain that the match is soon to end. Looking at her body's state, her left eye and right arm were inflicted professionally with wind magic, causing these parts to show a clean open wound. Her legs which had its tendons frozen, soon lost its power to hold the full weight of the warrior. Thus, disabling her movements and forced her to kneel down.

She tried to pull herself back to the ground, not knowing when to give up. As she was about to stand halfway, her opponent casts a spell on her. Spirals coiled around the caster's hand and gradually spun in a clockwise manner. As the spiral reached its maximum rotation speed, it pierced its way on the victim's head, no evident marks were shown however.

"Ahhhh! No!" the warrior cried out. On the floor, she rolled all furiously on the floor with her arms on the sides of her head. Her eyes reddened. After ten minutes of countless rolling, the girl stopped. In those few moments, no signs of life were detected to the girl.

Blood soon covered the floor in which her head was laying down on. The crowd barraged the whole area with noise as the battle ended in a brutal manner. Nobody really knows what happened to the girl, as to why she screamed in a fearful manner and why she died. In the side of the arena holds a huge screen that flashed the results of the first tier.

_Anju Yuuki - vs - Sachiko Tanaka winner: Anju Yuuki_

_Rebecca - vs - Shiga Hitomi winner: Shiga Hitomi_

_Nagamaya Minami - vs - Hasekura Kasane winner: Nagamaya Minami_

_Shinomiya Akiru - vs - Kurosaki Shun winner: Shinomiya Akiru_

After a few minutes, the text died out and then showed another set of words.

_2nd Tier_

_Anju Yuuki - vs - Nagamaya Minami Location: The Forest of Deception_

_Shiga Hitomi - vs - Shinomiya Akiru Location: Night Desert Storm_

"Huh? What's with the location?" Nico asked.

"Excellent question!" Tsubasa shouted. "This tournament will be different compared to the previous tournaments. The fight will be held at the same time with different locations on which the warriors will be teleported at. Therefore, the fights will be hologramed to the arena at real time! The limit on the battle is 2 hours, the one who gets the most injuries losses!" Tsubasa flew up until she was no longer seen by the crowd, a timer then appeared on the screen.

10 minutes is all that Anju had to prepare for her next battle. She knows that everyone was strong, she knows that a single step can lead to her defeat, or worse, death. However, this didn't faze her. She was determined to help her friends no matter the cost. "Hey, Umi." she called out to the bluenette. Umi's face looked really really pale, almost like a ghost. "Are you alright?" the auburnette asked.

The bluenette turned. "Yeah... I really can't get used to seeing someone die..." Kotori offered her an empty bag which she accepted and used it to carry the vomit Umi let out. "It's really scary, I know I killed lots of things... But I can't find myself getting used to seeing a human die." she said, shaking.

"same goes for me." Nico said. It was obvious in Nico's face. "Can someone who's used to seeing people die be even considered human?"

"Yeah... I agree with Nico-chan." Maki added. The crimsonette, who's head was filled with so much thoughts was not really able to focus on her surroundings. Luckily, she had Nico who was with her hugging her the whole time. She only felt the warmth of the other girl engulfing her very presence. She was not scared, she doesn't know why. Trying to recall her past back when her real mother was still alive, screeches reverberated repeatedly, forcing her to stop herself from remembering anything.

It doesn't matter now, only Nico can soothe her heart and soul. "also, I have heard of the Forest of Deception. A law was set that nobody can enter or even go near it within a 30 meter radius, I don't know the details; but, last time someone was foolish enough to enter that forest, that person was nowhere to be found."

"Do you really have to go and fight Anju-san?" Kotori asked coarsely. She gave Umi a hug, fearing that the bluenette will go somewhere far away from her life which she will never want. "Umi here really looks like she can't handle much more of this."

"You can always leave if you want..." she pulled the end part of her glove to the full extent to make sure it won't loosen up in the fight. _I can't give up now, I must fight until the end. I'm sorry Kotori, Umi, Nico, Maki... There's no other choice. _Pulling herself up, Anju head down to the arena along with the other contestants. Soon after, Tsubasa showed up once again from the air now holding a cotton candy on her hand.

"Hahaha! Sorry about that everyone! I remember that there was a festival going on at the next town. Anyways!" Tsubasa waved her scepter to the ground and in an instant, the competitors bodies began to glow blue, "I'll be teleporting you four to your locations! Have fun! Hurting each other that is!" the brunette laughed. "Oh yeah! Do note that some things _might _hinder your path~ do be careful~"

"Anju!" the four shouted in unison.

"Good luck out there, Anju." Maki prayed. Soon, the bodies of the four dissipated into tiny particles, leaving no trace behind.

**Anju POV **

It was cold, dark, but mostly cold. As the magic carried me into the rendezvous, my heart pounded twice, if not once with every passing second.

The feeling is exquisite, but the situation is not. _I have to do this_. When I opened my eyes, I see the reflection of my own self. It was ice. _So this is the Forest of Deception... _I thought to myself. Surveying the area, all I see were the reflections of my own self in ice, am I trapped? Surveying my surroundings, the only path emitting light I see right now were the holes above me; sadly it was too far from reach. I am left with no choice but to find my own way out in a different method.

I roamed around until I came across a fork path. Walking down the empty icy land on the left, all I see were reflections of myself. A ten minute walked only led to the same terrain without any changes at all. I sighed. Think Anju think. Giving in to my thoughts, I was with no choice but to try and break these icy walls.

It was too beautiful to break it though, maybe it's just me. After giving it one last look, I took out my whip and gave one of the ice walls a slap.

_Whack _my whip goes; however, the wall is still standing tall without a dent or even a scratch.

I gave it another slap with more force, but the results were still the same. I let out another cold sigh as this attempt failed me. _I wonder what Umi's thinking now? I'm sure she's just having fun with Kotori. _I giggled. Seeing how a trip with the left path was useless, I decided to go back and take the right. In a few minutes, I came back to the exact spot to where I was before. As I take my first step on the right path, a voice called out to me.

_Help me _it said, I'm sure it was just a prank. Diving even deeper into the icy layed path, the voice grew louder and louder. It reached to the point where it drove my patience into the brink of , I closed my eyes and walked faster, but it did not help me from getting further away from the voice that creeps into my fragile eardrums.

_It was too much, It's too painful. _I ran, then sprinted. All of a sudden, it stopped. When I opened my eyes, I see the open field. I finally got out of that darn pit hole. _It is still cold but still better than getting stuck into that previous area. _Laying my hands on my shoulders for warmth. Without a moment to spare, I rushed off in search for the enemy that awaits me.

**Narrator POV**

The Forest of Deception, by the name itself holds lots of mysteries. What does this Forest actually hide?

_Where is she.._ Anju said mentally. It has been quite a while ever since she surveyed the area, in search for her opponent.

Checking every crook and cranny holds a piece of evidence that says someone was there; however, each of these evidence leads to entirely different assumptions. On the left lies a footstep, around 11 inches long and on the left was 6 inches. Recalling how her opponent looked like, it was hard to say that the girl's foot was that long or short.

"Just what is it that..." her words were stopped by a faint thud from behind. Anju looked back and sees huge silhouette coming right at her. _What th_- again, her words stopped but it was due to huge snowball that crashed into her body. She bellowed.

Upon recovering from said impact, she looked at the south once again and sees that the silhouette that was once there no longer there. "... What was that..." she said to herself. Getting back to her feet, she swiped the ice away from her affected parts and check out what actually had hit her.

Checking back to the others. Umi, who's attention has been focused on Anju's actions this whole time let out a frown. "Don't, Anju..."

"What's wrong Umi-chan?" Kotori asked.

Scratching her chin, "I don't know... I just get the feeling that something bad will happen..."

Clueless about what Umi's talking about, Kotori tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"It's like... When the camera tried to focus on the silhouette, It made me remember of something that I once have seen in the past."

_Past... Now that Umi mentioned it, I do recall seeing a silhouette like Anju encountered just now in the past... I just can't remember what it exactly was... _Maki thought. Nico, who gave Maki a stare pouted at her due to lack of attention.

"Geez~ Maki-chan's not giving enough love to Nico!"

Snapping back to reality, she gave Nico a hug. "I'm sorry, I'll give you lots of love once we're out of this hell hole. Okay?" the little one blushed then nodded.

"Where was that thing that hit me?" looking to her surroundings, not a single footstep was visible upon checking the ground. Moments later, a blizzard came, forcing Anju to find for shelter to cover her from it.

"Just my luck..." as she looked to her right, she sees a cave not too far from where she was. With no moment to spare, the auburnette sprinted as fast as she could before the blizzard throttled to full force.

"Phew." Anju wiped her sweat. Turning to her back,she sees an elongated dim path. Looking outside, the blizzard showed no signs of dying out soon, it would be stupid to just stay there idle and freeze to death due to the lack of movement.

Pulling herself up, she walked slowly, looking at every corner of the cave. Nothing seemed to be out of the usual apart from a spiral drawing engraved at the end of it.

_This spiral..._ As she tried to touch the enigmatic spiral, her instincts prevented her from doing so halfway. She then rushed back to the near entrance due to the feeling that something was "watching her". By the time she got back, the blizzard was gone, but something else standing on her way.


	16. White Clouded Memories

**A/N: Hello everybody~ Kuu here. I guess I was in the mood to write xD this was the result. sorry if I disappointed you orz. **

**(Dash24zappshift): Thanks~ Good luck on the exams my Kouhai fight-o!**

**(Kido22Tsubomi): I designed Tsubasa to be somewhat of a gag character in this fanfic; however, she'll turn somewhat serious once its her turn to fight.**

**(Kurama16): No problem~ I tried to fit some NicoMaki love in this chapter, it took me a while to try and put some xD**

**(KazaneHyori): Thanks for the compliment~ I'll try to update as fast as I can (as long as my time allows me to)**

**Also, If anyone wants to contact me, I'm mostly online in FB. send me a message if you want to chat or something xD (we're all bored ok)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live! **

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What she saw was way beyond from what she had expected. First came the blizzard, now came the fiery eruptions of volcanoes that seemingly spawned right before her eyes.

"Kuh..." She groaned. "Just what is happening..." probing to the nearest volcano, its overflowing lava was moving as slow as a turtle but due to the number of volcanoes, the time before she'll be surrounded is shorter than she would have expected.

She needs to find her enemy and beat her in this game, now. Examining her surroundings, she sees a faint glow behind a dormant volcano. It was blue, just like ice.

"Is that her?" Anju muttered to herself. Looking down, she's given two paths to choose. She had no time for errors. With her whip at hand, She used it to bring herself down and headed to the center. Reaching towards her pocket, she pulls out one of Nozomi's elixirs and threw it down to her feet for levitation. Anju climbed up as fast as she could and within seconds, she sees the source of that faint glow.

It was Nagayama Minami. The girl who Anju had been looking for all this time. It was weird really, Nagayama dressed up casually with no armors to fend her off from vital attacks. In addition, no signs of injuries are visible. With a book titled "The Illustrated Book of Saving the World with the Magic of Food", it made Anju find it even weirder to how this girl won in the first round.

"La la la ~ These lil' onions should do the trick~ ehehe~!" the girl joyfully sang as she dashed out the ingredients to the big cauldron she had been using. It seems that she had yet to become wary of Anju's presence; finding this situation as an advantage, Anju walked down stealthily and tried to snuck in behind the girl.

In which Anju had failed to do, the cauldron spawned multiple tentacle-like objects and grappled Anju, immobilizing her. "You shouldn't disturb me when I'm cooking you know~ my cooking can be quite feisty to girls like you." Nagayama playfully warned.

"So... This is what you've been conjuring up until now?" Anju asked scornfully.

The girl giggled. "Haha~ of course~ I've been dying to fight against you Anju. After all, a girl whose body is as voluptuous as yours can be used as an ingredient that will surely please the children back in my home~"

"You cannibal..." Anju muttered. "but, you will never defeat me." Anju mustered up all of her strength and broke the restraints. "After all, I'm just here to save a certain friend of mine from a wicked turn of events." a smile showed up on Anju's face.

In turn, Nagayama responded with a smile. "Let's just see, I'm quite strong you know?" she pulled out a laddle from her back pocket and swings it towards Anju. In the last second, Anju evaded and pulled herself towards Nagayama's waist.

Anju whisked out her whip in full force but in turn, Nagayama jumped out of the way and kicked Anju at the face. "You're not so bad, Anju. You'll taste so great as an appetizer~ Oh I can imagine the praises I will be getting from the children~ such bliss~"

"Don't think a single kick gives you certain victory." Anju said. "You're also standing at the trap I just set up." she smirked.

"Huh?" Looking down, Nagayama sees a flash bomb. She tried to get away from its range but failed as the bomb immediately exploded, causing her to gain temporary blindness. "That's unfair!"

"Everything is unfair. Just like my love that will never bloom." Anju sighed. "It's time to end all of your atrocities." pulling out a knife from her back pocket, Anju walked towards the girl and striked in for the kill.

As the knife was about to pierce its sharp fangs to the girl, Anju's hands were stopped by newly spawned tentacles that once again immobilized her. "Kuh..."

Nagayama snickered. "You think that you'll kill me that easily? Think again~ this thing I'm conjuring up is quite the helper you see, once it's fully cooked, you lose."

In moments, Nagayama's eyes were able to see again.

"You'll never beat me Anju~ you're just too weak. So please, be my main ingredient for today." Nagayama picked up the knife that Anju had previously held and stabbed her at the stomach.

"Ack!"

"Anju!" Umi and Kotori shouted in unison.

"Anju's in a tight situation... Is there something that we can do?" Nico asked with a worried look.

Maki patted the raven haired girl and pulled her down to her shoulders. "Let's just hope for the best and believe in Anju. I know she can do it."

_Please Anju... I believe in you... _Umi prayed.

"Hahaha~ you sound so cute when you squeal Anju. I look forward in seeing your bodily fluids sweetening up my dish's flavor~"

"I'll never... Forgive you..." blood soon flowed out of Anju's mouth. Her consciousness soon finds itself in a hazy state. It won't be too long until her eyes shuts itself and coldness fills her inner body.

Would have been the outcome if it weren't for the voice that suddenly called out in her mind.

_Anju, don't give up. I believe in you. _

"...Huh?"

_Anju, don't give up... I... Believe... In you... _The voice repeated once again.

"...Heh.. You sure bring me back to my spirits, you've been there for me all this time. Now, it is my time to return the favor." in full consciousness, she reached out to the knife in her stomach and tried to pull it out by force.

"H-hey, what are you doing!?" Nagayama shouted out.

Anju smirked. "What else am I doing? Surviving with and for my friends, that's what I'm doing!" She pulled the knife with even more force, she know it was painful but this didn't stop her. Anju was determined to fight for her friends. She knows she was not alone, everyone was there for her all this time.

"Grr.. Just die already!" Nagayama pushed the knife further into Anju's stomach by applying force to the knife with her laddle.

"Kuh... It may be painful... But..." Anju's grip tightened. "this is nothing compared to losing the people who you care the most!" in full force, Anju successfully pulled out the knife out of her system. The force also pushed back Nagayama to the ground. She swiftly cut the things that restrained and walked towards Nagayama.

"I won't kill you, but I won't forgive you if you're to hurt my friends." Anju threatened, pointing the knife to Nagayama's face.

"O-okay okay!" she shoute. "I'm sorry... I'll give up..." Nagayama muttered.

"Yay!" the four shrieked out. Anju won, Umi's answers were answered. It was a miracle.

"All right! Seems that Nagayama's forfeited, guess I'll cast a portal to bring them back." looking away, Tsubasa sighed. "too bad nobody died."

"Does that mean Anju's safe for now?" Kotori asked with a smile on her face.

"Yup, I'm glad she's safe." Umi sighs in relief.

"Phew, I thought Anju was a goner." Nico said.

"As expected of Anju. Those words she just said though... I'm glad we have her." Maki smiled. She noticed that her group of friends were expanding, her whole world expanded and is still is ever since Nico brought her outdoors. Maki pulled Nico to a hug and thanked her.

"Uegh!?" Nico blushed. "W-why are you hugging me all of a sudden!?"

"for everything." Maki's hug tightened.

"O-okay..." Nico hugged Maki back, with her blush intensifying every second.

Looking back to the screen, a portal showed up behind Anju. As the auburnette turned back and walked towards the gate, Nagayama smirked.

Before the auburnette could take her final steps before entering the portal, she felt a tremble that is not caused by a volcano. Looking behind, she sees the cauldron shaking vigorously and immediately erupted. Yellow like fluid gushed out of the cauldron and landed on one area. In seconds, a huge pile of yellow goo-ish fluid was stood behind Nagayama.

"Even if I gave up, I never said you'll come out of this tournament alive." Nagayama said. The yellow pile then morphed into a huge spiral monster, with its whole body filled with the yellow substance. Its body drooped out yellow substances as it levitates freely from the ground.

"I can say~ this is one of the best dishes I have made so far. Now, it's time for you to become one with my dish, Anju!" Nagayama then commanded the giant spiral to charge to Anju. In the speed that could rival against a missile, it pierces inside the injury of Anju that was previously dealt and brings her to the air.

The spiral monster then rotated and fell back to the ground, pushing Anju to the utmost pain.

"Ahhh!" the impact may have broken two or three ribs of Anju; probably even more.

"Don't worry~ I'll take care of your corpse once you're dead Anju. Now please, die!" Nagayama jumped to the spiral monster and rode it naturally. She pushed Anju into even further pain by pushing her deeper into the earth's crust.

"I'll.. Never! Give... Up!" Anju protested. She latched into the drill of the spiral monster and attemped to push the monster away from her.

"It's no use! You're too weak! Weak I say!" Nagayama laughed. Pushing even more force, Anju cried out in pain.

She knows that the monster was strong, but she also knows that she must come back alive. Putting more force into her muscles, she once again tries to push the monster away but failed once again.

"Uh..." It might be too late, the pain was too much for her. Memories of her and with the rest gushed into her mind non stop. The time they have made may have been short; however, she knows that the experience she had felt was enough to last her a life time. As she was about to give up, the mark that once appeared in her shoulder appeared once again.

It shined so bright that it forced Nagayama to pull back to prevent herself from getting blinded once again. "W-what's happening!?"

In moments time, all of the volcanoes present erupted. The lava shined like the mark on Anju's shoulders. With ease, Anju pulled out the unmanned spiral monster away from her. The monster evaporated due to it landing inside the volcano.

"M-my cooking!" Nagayama trembled in fear, she never expected something like this to happen. Looking into Anju's face, a smile from the auburnette was seen.

"You've broken my trust, you leave me no choice but to shut you up. Permanently." the marked shined even brighter, this caused the actions of Anju to be left unseen in the screen.

Within moments, Anju alone emerged out of the portal. The crowd cheered for her due to her utmost performance. Thought they didn't see the last few seconds, they knew that what Anju had done was an impossible feat from avoid death by a strand.

"Looks like Anju's the winner! That was amazing! What just happened in those last few seconds!? Only Anju and Nagayama knows but wait! I'm not even sure if Nagayama's alive!"

Tsubasa commentated.

Anju rushed towards her group of friends, earning a group hug from the four.

"You did great, Anju!" Kotori praised.

"Hehe~ darn you're so powerful Anju, mind training me?" Nico asked.

"Hey!" Maki pouted. "I should be the one training you, you know..."

"Ah.." Nico scratched her head. "Sorry Anju, guess I have my trainer here all along~"

"Haha~ Good luck, Maki~" Anju said in a supportive manner.

"I almost thought that you were going to die..." Umi's hug tightened.

Anju patted the bluenette's head and smiled. "I'll never leave my friends behind, not now, not ever."

"It seems that Hitomi's the winner! That was such a one sided match, Akiru didn't even stand a chance!" Tsubasa declared.

Hitomi emerged from the portal unscathed. Her fight didn't even last for five minutes, it was the search that extended the time.

Akiru was known for tactical retreats by using her umbrella to fly away and attack on air but it seems that it was not enough to fight against Hitomi.

"be careful... Hitomi's one fierce monster, don't get to her too close or else you're a goner." Maki warned.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure that I'll win." Anju replied.

"Now! All that's left is Shiga and Anju... Oh the next match will decide on who I will be fighting against! This excitement is making my adrenaline rush! I can't wait for the winner!" Tsubasa squealed. "All right! Now..."

In a flash, the final location pops out of the screen. "The final location is!..."


	17. Dark Vivid Promise

**A/N: Sorry about that, I got lazy and had no motivation(until today!). I was playing idle games for 2 weeks(yeap, playing an IDLE game A u A)**

**(Kurama16): No problemo~ I'll try to update as fast as I can now that I've got a weee bit of motivation**

**(Dash24zappshift): why would I let Anju die ; w; that's just rood.**

**(Rena Bodewig): Thanks for reading my fanfic~ Actually, I'll be adding Rin and Hanayo(haven't even revealed all of the character's classes yet.) don't worry, they're all going to be together(I hope.) and for the next question, yeap~ Anju loves Umi all right but in this AU, she's more of a "if it means to let you go to make you happy, I'll do so." character.**

**Me and Tri were slacking together actually, I just slacked more than him(guhehe~)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Love Live!**

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**A few minutes ago**

**Anju POV**

I closed my eyes. Umi approached me and asked me if I'll be alright. I nodded. I'm sure I'll win, the terrain is in my favor, after all. There's nothing to be worried about. After giving my last words before department, I waved to them with a smile.

I entered the portal, a portal that looks the same as other portals that I have entered. I have entered into portals endless times like this back when I was still an Empress of Darkness. It's pitiful, really. From an Empress of Darkness who used to rule numerous empires to a mere humanoid that I am now. I still bear my powers, maybe even greater than before, but the body I once had has been destroyed due to Umi; I'm grateful for what she did.

**Present time**

By the time the portal has transported me to my destination, my eyes began to survey my surrounding; like an eagle searching for its prey. Walking around for a few minutes, a dark castle stood before me. By the looks of it, it was made back in the Imperial Age. Its outer shell tells me that it'll break soon.

I entered the castle in high alert. I know I'm in a disadvantage. Getting teleported at the outside can mean instant death in a war. I Looked up and see the chandelier hanged motionlessly. Looking at my left, I see 3 doors. At my right, 1 door. I stroke my chin, thinking about which path should I take. After a couple of minutes, I decided to take the 1st door of the left path. I approached door and opened it. What I saw was total darkness.

Unlike Eri, I'm not afraid of the dark; I find it comfortable, to tell you the truth. Slithering to my beloved in the dark is exc- forget what I just said. I entered the dark room, cold wind slapped me right in the face. Could it be that this room leads to a hidden passage? Due to my curiosity, I walked even further. The deeper I went, the colder did the room get. Halfway, I saw small amounts of light reaching towards me; however, by the time I reached the end of the dark room, what welcomed me was no light but evil.

Who knew I would encounter such evil in all my life. Where I am now is a moonlit room keeping a dark rapier that continuously emits a humid, dark aura around it. It seems to be floating in mid air. Unknowingly, the mark in my shoulder reacted to it. My body reached out to the weapon, like a baby that's about to reach its first toy. _Stop! _I cried out to myself, but it was no use. My body didn't obey my orders. When my fingers were about to touch its handle, a huge boulder went straight to me and successfully knocked me back.

"Such things won't help you, you'll only lose your life if you do." a voice came out of the dark room to where I emerged from. I clutched into my waist in pain. The impact was powerful enough to snap my body back to its usual control.

I remained quiet and hid myself in the darkness. I know it was her, I can hear the screeching sound coming from her dragged weapon. "There's no use hiding, I can sense the demon inside you." I bit my tongue, letting out a "Tch" sound. I waited for her to emerge from the door before revealing my own self. What was on her shoulder was a huge bat covered in spikes. She looked like some kind of wannabe gangster but what made me think was her "perception".

"What made you say that I have a demon inside me...?" I questioned her. Her face showed no expression and answered back. She pointed at my shoulder.

"That mark says you're a ruler, and by the looks of it, a ruler of darkness. That enough explains that you have a demon inside you; however, it looks like its powers have been depleted tremendously due to the fact that it no longer has the power to hide itself from your body." she explained. I tilted my head in dismay, it was a mark of a ruler? I never knew if you ask me.

In an attempt of gaining more information. I asked her another question. "So you mean that every ruler has such a mark?"

She nodded. "Yes, but you're the first ruler I have seen to have it on appear on the shoulders. Most of the time, they appear on the feet. The higher the mark is on the body of the ruler, the stronger the power does the user hold; however, its been said that the limit of the mark is until the chin only, but no records have successfully proved such a theory so far. So you could say you'll be the strongest enemy I'll encounter so far in my journey."

_I see... So it was no mere coincidence that this mark showed up on my shoulders huh. _I thought to myself. By the time she finished answering my question, she unsheathed her weapon from her shoulder and pointed the large weapon at me. I naturally stanced myself, preparing for her first attack.

"Now come! I want to see the strength of a ruler at your level." she shouted. We glared into each others eyes, within hers was filled with the will to fight. Her goal is to beat me and win, but thinking back, she brought her previous enemies to a near death state; I get the feeling that she won't do the same to me. I pulled out my whip and engaged the first attack.

I pushed myself and charged towards her. In an instant, I was behind her. I was sure I caught her defenseless, but what I saw was her bat heading towards my face. I ducked for safety but the seemingly heavy bat turned its way towards me. I jumped away for safety. The bat landed on below her feet, creating cracks on the surface. Her strength was no joke at all. One hit from that deadly weapon can mean instant death. I have to take in extra precautions.

I checked my pockets if I still have more of Nozomi's potions, only three remained. I'm really sorry Nozomi, I think I took too much without your permission. With my attention caught by the potions, that Hitomi girl caught my back without me being able to detect her presence. She slammed my back with the bat without mercy. It was painful, the spikes pierced to my back, my body soon found itself flying towards a wall. I can feel my back bleeding, 6... no, 7 spikes probably stabbed me. Comparing this to the boulder is like comparing the pain between hot water and dry ice. It was just so painful. I stood up, still groaning in pain. I shouldn't make the same mistake again, such a weapon should be banned, seriously. Stupid Tsubasa.

"Is that all you've got? I was expecting more from a ruler like you." I know she was just provoking me. I clutched my whip tightly and surged some of my energy into it, my whip lit a dark red. I have to buy some time for my body to rejuvenate my injuries. My healing rate is better compared to a normal. Such an injury will only take 3 minutes for my body to heal from. I ran towards her, extended my whip and used it to reach towards Hitomi.

Obviously, she evaded it, but what she doesn't know is that I missed on purpose. While she was on air, I quickly pulled back my whip and grabbed her with it successfully. "Cra-" before she was able to finish what she was about to say, I pulled her down to the ground causing her to let out a bitter wail. Thankfully, the magic I implemented into my weapon made me bring her down without straining my body too much.

I gave her grounded body a look and in surprise, her body was barely scratched. "Your body's tougher than it looks." I said. Without longer than 5 seconds from landing from the ground, she was back to her normal stepping.

"Of course, I've dealt with countless battles and wars." she let out a smirk. I smirked in return, it seems that both of us have something in common. We love fighting, the adrenaline that fuels our bodies into greater drives. Most of the time, we let our weapon do the talking. That's what made us warriors. That's what made us prisoners of war.

I guess it was about time for both of us to get serious. With the injuries from my back now fully recovered, I embedded most of my magical energy to my weapon, causing it to burn dark red, literally. In turn, she too gathered her energy to her weapon, which made the spikes burn blue. This time, without warning, she pulled the first attack against me.

She swung her bat at a monstrous rate. I evaded each attack but not fully. The first swing grazed my arm, next was my waist and the last was my finger. I waved my whip vigorously, inflicting both injuries to her and the interior of the room; I may have forced in too much strength there, I should be careful not to destroy this room which might lead us both to our deaths. She charged once again and thrusts her bat towards me. I jumped on her weapon while avoiding the spikes and whipped her hands from above.

"Kuh, that hurts you know." she complained. I looked at her arms then noticed it tightening its grip from the bat. In an instant, I was thrown off from the bat. Next thing I knew, my face was kissing the ground. Darn, I was caught off guard. I pulled myself up and when I turned back, she was not there. Swiftly, I turned back and sees her about to pummel me with her huge bat.

"Take this!" in that moment, my vision started to darken. Time slowed itself as the weapon that's about to dig to my face slowed along with it. It was until the mark on my shoulder began to glow red. What's happening...? The bright red glow burst and the next thing I know was that I saw Hitomi's body far away from me, as if she was pushed back.

"No way..." she groaned. It was obvious that she's struggling when she was pulling herself back up. "your power should have already been depleted... Why did it still create that phenomenal burst!"

I tilted my head with a huge question mark above it. I don't understand what she's saying. Nonetheless, this battle is far from over, I'm sure of that. After giving her a few seconds to stand, it looks like she regained most of her composure. Readying myself in a defensive stance, she pushed her bat down to the ground which created fissures. _Crap. I need to think of something fast! But what can save me from this harm? _Suddenly, an idea popped out of my head. How stupid of me, I totally forgot about Nozomi's potions. I pulled out one of them and poured it on the ground before it collapsed.

I looked down, and all I see is never ending darkness. Even as someone as me who loves to stay in the dark wouldn't want to stay in such a place forever. Looking back to Hitomi, I noticed that her weapon's starting to break down. I rushed towards her and gave her legs a strong impact, causing her to go down to her knees. While savouring the pain, she looked at me with grimace.

"It's over for you, Hitomi. You should surrender while you still have your life with you." Is what I said, It's too bad that such a strong warrior is someone that I can never bring to my side with. After a few moments of waiting for her answer, she stood up and pointed her bat at me. I know she's stubborn, but really?

"I will never give up without banishing that demon out of your body..." her reply somewhat pisses me off. What demon is she exactly talking about? Such a thing does not exist in my body... Right now, that's what I'm sure. Looking through her eyes once more, there's still that will to fight burning inside of her. "I've made a promise to someone special... After all..."

_A promise...? _Her eyes now drooped by itself, as if looking back to the past. "What promise are you talking about...?" I asked. I know, it's bad to prey into someone's business, but right now, I feel that I have to know this so called _promise_.

"... I'll tell you if you can beat me." she held her weapon high and swings it towards me. "Take this!" once again, I blocked her attack. It looks like her strength has weakened as her swings felt a little lighter than it used to. Looking at her face just makes me take pity on her.

With all the remaining energy I could muster, I transferred every drop of it into my weapon and coiled her weapon with mine. In an instant, I pulled her weapon causing it to burst into tiny pieces. The look in her face was priceless; such despair.

"My..." she lost her footing as she tried to catch the falling bits. I looked down onto her, where did that will to fight go, I wonder..?

"It's over, you're no longer able to fight... Hitomi." I withdrew my weapon and walked away from her. As I left the room, I heard her wail, as if she had lost a dear friend.

After getting out of that cold dark room, I felt something different. Its painful. I clutched into my chest which was the source of pain. Was it regret? I'm not sure. I took in deep breaths and surprisingly, the pain was no longer there. That's right, this is just a fight that I must win no matter what. I pay no heed to the sacrifices that I must throw if it were to save them alone.

Moments after, a portal stood before me. Guess that means I win. I entered the portal and the next thing I know, found myself in captivated by the cheers of everyone. Some looked happy, some looked surprised. Overall, the pleasure of achievement was great.

I saw Tsubasa jumping down from her cloud chair above and landed right before me. She pointed her scepter below my chin like a microphone. "Congratulations, Anju! You can't believe how loud the cheers were with that spectacular fight! I guess you'll be fighting with me next!" she winked at me. I smiled in return. "is there something that you would like to tell your friends and probably fans?"

I nodded. "Thanks for watching me fight until the end guys~ I'll make sure that I'll give this troublesome Tsubasa a heck of a fight~"

She sheepishly laughed. "who are you calling troublesome~ Anyways!" she jumped back to her seat. "With that, the challenger, Anju will be-" Tsubasa's announcement was interrupted by a sudden earthquake. I turned to my attention to Umi and the others. Nico was shaking while hugging... Maki. While Umi looks like she was telling them to evacuate to the arena. I ran to them and did the same.

"Anju! Can you carry Kotori to somewhere safe?" she pointed out. "she passed out earlier before the earthquake." I nodded. I carried Kotori's unconscious body and ran outside as fast as I can before putting her down inside one of the houses in which I found safe and empty. She was quite light, just like a bird. I ran back to the others once again and panicked as I see the statues on top of the stadium falling down. Without a second to spare, I ran towards them and shouted. "Umi, Nico, Maki! Get out of there as fast as you can!"

"Huh?" Umi, who was clueless tilted her head in confusion. There was no time to explain. There was no time at all. The statue is about to land on them, I don't think I'll be able to save them; but I have to try! I lunged myself towards them and successfully pushed them away from danger. Unfortunately, my leg was impaled by the statue's crown. I let out a cry of pain.

"Anju, are you all right!?" Umi asked with tears falling down from her face. She cares for me, that makes me happy. I nodded with a smile.

"Nico, Maki! Help me out here!" Umi ran behind me and tried to pull the statue as hard as she could.

**Narrator POV**

"Just run... I don't want you guys to be in danger..." Anju muttered. Her hands quivered as the pain seeps into her body even further.

_Just run... Please... _She added in her thoughts. Umi, who was supposedly behind her walked toward Anju's front and slapped her.

"Like hell I will!" Umi scowled. Tears flew from her cheeks as her hand collides with Anju's face. "As if I could leave someone as close to you behind! I don't want to lose you or even anyone in this journey!" She plummeted her hands down to the ground. "I don't want to experience the same pain I had felt before ever again! I don't want to disappoint my Dad or even anyone... So please..." at that time, her emotions exploded, causing tears to drip directly off her eyelids. "So please... Let me be greedy for once..."

"Umi..." Anju felt bad about her careless words, she knew that it would inflict Umi if one of them had to fall to make it out alive. A life spared at a cost of a friend is too painful to live with. "All right, Do as you please, Umi." she smiled. She reached at the bluenette's face with her free hand and wiped the tears off her face. "Now don't cry, okay? You'll ruin your beautiful face."

Umi nodded. The bluenette ran back and once again tried to pull off the statue that disabled the auburnette.

_Thud_

"Does it hurt Anju!?" she shouted from the back.

"No... I'm fine." Anju answered.

"O-okay..."

_Thud_

"Kuh..."

"S-sorry about that..."

"I-It's okay... It's nothing compared to the fights I've been put through."

The bluenette sighed. "Even so, I don't want to put you in danger."

"That's what I should be saying." Anju retorted. Suddenly, she felt the pain intensify.

"Ow ow ow ow! All right all right, I get it."

Umi huffed with pride. "Good. Now leave this to us." Umi turned back, staring at the two who looked like they were flirting at this horrible situation. "Nico, Maki! Stop flirting and help me here!"

"Wah! S-sorry about that!" Nico ran as fast as she could and gave the bluenette a helping hand.

Maki soon followed. "H-Hey, wait for me, Nico-chan!"

"All right. One, Two, Pull!" the three attempted to pull the huge statue with all there might and failed. "O-one more... Pull!" once again, they failed.

"T-this statue's too heavy!" Nico complained.

"Yeah... We need more people." Umi said.

"Heyyyyyy! What are you guys doing there!?" Tsubasa shouted. She hovered towards them and landed on the ground safely. "You guys should run as fast as you ca- Anju!?" her eyes widened, seeing the winner in stuck.

"Hey, Tsubasa, help us out pulling this statue away from Anju." Umi asked.

"Aha... Those types of statues can only be pulled out with magic you know." Tsubasa said, laughing sheepishly.

"No way..." Umi fell to the ground, quivering.

"Nobody here can use magic..." Nico sighed.

"What should we do..." Maki said.

Tsubasa gave the three a deadpan look. "Seriously...?"

The three gave her a 'what' look. "Seriously!? I can use magic! M-a-g-i-c!"

"Ah... I totally forgot about that." Umi stood up and held onto Tsubasa's hands. "Help us, Tsubasa! Please!"

"Seriously... Of course I'll help, besides, we need all the help we need right now."

Umi tilted her head. "Help? Is there something wrong?"

Tsubasa nodded. "Actually..."

"Uhmm... Tsubasa... Before explaining, can you please get this statue off of me first...?" Anju asked with a grimace look on her face which nobody saw.

"A-ah... Sorry about that." she pulled out her scepter from her back and waved it in a circular motion while chanting a spell. Light dispersed around the statue and disappeared. "There... Sorry that I can't patch those wounds of yours, Anju, I don't know a spell of restoration, you see."

"It's fine, my body heals faster than a normal human." the auburnette stood up and stretched. "See? I'm perfectly fine~"

"That's amazing Anju! Are you like a superhuman or something!?" Nico's eyes widened in fascination.

Anju giggled. "That's a s-e-c-r-e-t~" Nico pouted which then caused Maki in reflex to hug the cute pouter.

"Maki-channnnn! Anju's being mean to meeeee!" Nico complained. Maki hugged the girl tighter.

"There there~ Maki's got you." Maki said while patting Nico. Anju winked at her, causing Maki to smile. _Thanks Anju. _

Tsubasa, who has been deadpan staring at the two lovebirds the whole time let out a cough, grabbing the attention of the others. "...Anyways... The field that Anju and Hitomi used is actually one of the deceased great demon lord's personal castles 500 feet below this very arena, and the source of the strong earthquake just now came from that very place."

"Speaking of Hitomi... What happened to her after Anju won?" Umi asked.

Tsubasa pulled out a device out of her pocket. "I found this device which an orange haired sorceress dropped next town. You know, when I went away for a few minutes for the festival?" everyone nodded in response. "I have yet to give it back but it turns out that this device detects the presence of magic; you could say it's a tracking device for magic. So earlier, It let out this fierce 'nyan' sound while the earthquake took place. I took it out and it showed a huge dot below us."

Anju folded her arms, not convinced by Tsubasa's explanation. "But that doesn't explain to what happened to Hitom-" before she was able to finish her sentence, Tsubasa interrupted her

"Let me finish." Anju sighed. "I sent three of my workers there when you returned back, and it turns out that Hitomi was no longer there."

"Huh? What do you mean Hitomi's no longer there?" Anju asked.

"That's the problem. What's more, I lost contact of those workers when I tried to bring them back." Tsubasa further explained.

With all of the chaos that's happening in this world, such a thing is bound to happen. Umi walked towards Tsubasa and looked at the device. "Erm... Why's there a dark dot...?"

"Huh?" Tsubasa looked at the device, her eyes widened in shock. "Everyone, Run!" Everyone did what Tsubasa commanded. By the time they ran to the center of the arena, another earthquake was bestowed upon them. "T-this is much stronger than before! What's happening!?"

"I don't know!" Anju answered. Everyone lost their footing as the magnitude grew. Suddenly, a huge dark bolt shot out off the ground to where they were previously on. The unknown object soon crashed back to the ground that dispersed a medium sized sand cloud which blocked their vision.

As the began to disappear, a human like structure began to form. It was girl whose aura was furiously calling out death. She wields a thin sword that emitted the same wavelength of the said aura. "I won't let you go with that demon inside you..." the girl said. her voice was static, one could not determine if she was a human or not.

Anju slowly opened her eyes and immediately widened as she sees the girl's structure completely. "Hitomi!?" it was Hitomi, but at the same time not. Her skin has turned dark purple, eyes as red as a red moon. A horn was present, something that the Hitomi of the past did not have. "No... What have you done to Hitomi!?"

". . . . . ."

"No you're no-"

"Wait, Anju. She's the source of the earthquakes." Tsubasa interrupted. Looking back at the device, the dot is where the current Hitomi is standing. "She's no longer the Hitomi you've fought, we have no choice but to kill her."

"But!"

"She had a promise... Right? That promise was to exterminate all the evil in this world, but right now, one of the things that's creating havoc and immense evil is her. If we stop her, she'll be happy, right?" without a moment to spare, Tsubasa began to cast a spell. "Now do me a favor, hold her off for a while, we need to finish this quick or else the whole world will be in danger."

She looked at her comrades who were ready to fight, not a single drop of fear dwelled in their eyes. She turned to Tsubasa once again and nodded. "All right, let's go!"

**Meanwhile**

"Huh...? Where am I?" Kotori, who passed out earlier finally woke up. She shook her head repeatedly which placed her in a complete wake state. She surveyed her surroundings which was foreign to her.

"Oh yeah... I hit myself on the head when that earthquake came ehehehe~" she pulled herself up from where she lay and went outside to check on what was going on. Nobody was outside. As she looked up, she muttered. "... A red moon is coming..." images began to appear in her mind. Without hesitation, she ran as fast as she could to where Honoka, Eli and Nozomi were. "I must... Warn them!"

* * *

**Anju: So, Kuu... I know that you've been lazy recently, but can you please write your fics regularly~?**

**Kuu: Sure Sure~ If I have the motivation that is~**

**Anju: *smiles then takes out whip***

**Kuu: Eeek! SOMEONE HELP ME OM- *gets whipped* MAKI HEL-**

**Maki: Serves you right, you lazy bum.**

**Kuu: NOOOOO I SWEAR I'LL BE WRITING MORE OF YOU AND NICO DOING YOUR PRIVATE BUSINESSES !**

**Maki: Fueh!? N-No! Don't! (n-not that I mind though)**

**Kuu: ACK *gets whipped more* HELP ME Dx**


End file.
